


The rose and the dawn: the crimson road

by BGAV



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Adventure & Romance, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-06
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:15:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 82
Words: 392,869
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23039194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BGAV/pseuds/BGAV
Summary: When the time comes will you fulfill your fate or will you cut your own path? A story based on the Crimson Flower route and the importance of making your own choices. It will continue beyond the end of the route. I will add my own content to the route as it develops. Expect major changes during the war phase and beyond it. M!Byleth/Edelgard. This is a crosspost.
Relationships: Edelgard von Hresvelg & My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 5
Kudos: 39





	1. A new path

Do you remember Zanado, Nemesis?

The shock in the old man's face was evident moments before he was stabbed to death by a warrior with green hair and emerald eyes.

With an acute pain in the chest Byleth opened his eyes. It was the same dream that always tormented him. It was always accompanied by the same distant feelings: hatred, sadness and longing. However these feelings were not correlated with the blank expression on his face.

"Did you have the same dream again?"

Next to him was standing his father, Jeralt, the famous sword breaker. His tone was harsh but Byleth knew that it was his way of taking care of him.

"Yes, I saw that battle again".

"There hasn't been a battle of that magnitude in centuries. Anyway, don't worry too much about it. We have to prepare ourselves to depart from here. The Remire village has been a good place but we need gold and they don't need us anymore".

That was the life of a mercenary. His father was the leader of a mercenary group that had travelled around Fódland gaining quite a reputation. Byleth had learned everything from his father and he had followed him in battles since he was a young boy. He was named as the ashen demon as a consequence of his battle style and his blank expression even in the fiercest battles.

"Understood".

"You know that everyone is already waiting for you right?" Jeralt grinned.

Suddenly one of the mercenaries entered the small cabin where they were.

"Jeralt! A group of children has arrived. They say that they are running away from a group of bandits".

"That sounds strange, come with me Byleth".

At the gates of the village they were waiting. It was a group of three youngsters with clothes resembling a uniform. Byleth had never seen a group so different. A girl with amethyst eyes and white hair, holding an axe. A young blonde man with indigo eyes with a lance and a relaxed green eyed man with brown curly hair and a relaxed smile carrying a bow.

"Excuse me sir, we were assaulted by a group of bandits and decided to run away from them. Regrettably, some of them have decided to chase us down. I beg for your help" said the blue eyed man.

"Bandits near Remire?"

"Yes, they attacked at night while we were preparing for the last part of our trip" said the young woman.

"They are quite the group, a part of them could arrive in any moment" said the green eyed man, although his tone was carefree.

"Oh I see…That uniform…it's been a while" said Jeralt with a brief glimpse to Byleth. "We have to prepare ourselves I will tell the rest of the group, Byleth protect them while I gather our forces".

"Ok"

Byleth came near the group of three. "I see that everyone has a different weapon. We will take advantage of that." He directed his gaze to the browned haired man. "You will be behind us, use the trees to your advantage" Then he directed his gaze to the blue eyed man. "You will keep the laterals, use your lance to keep a safe distance between you and the attackers" and finally directed himself to the young girl "You will fight alongside me. Oh, by the way, my name is Byleth".

"You gave quite the speech" said the browned haired man. Name is Claude.

"I am Dimitri, I can't thank you enough for assisting us in this dire circumstances." Said the other young man.

"My name is Edelgard" said the young woman staring directly at his eyes while saying so. "You have an intense aura around you; now let me see the strength of your arms".

Nodding at them Byleth took his mercenary sword. The enemy came in a sudden, surprised at the sight of Byleth and the students. In the blink of an eye they were welcomed by Claude´s arrows. Byleth could hear faint sounds in the forest. "It looks like father is already fighting" he thought.

Quick as the lightning he rushed to the position of two of the thieves. He parried the dash of one of them and cut off the arm of the other. The scream that followed allowed him a glimpse to finish the other one. The dying one murmured "mercy" before been swiftly killed by him. "No hesitation" he thought.

The others were keeping their own quite well. The accuracy of Claude was something to take into account and the strength of Dimitri was impressive. However, his attention was attracted to the young girl called Edelgard, despite her height she was making a quick job of her enemies.

"They don't fight like mercenaries but they are used to fighting" he thought.

"Curse these mercenaries. This was not included in the contract". Said a muscled man who looked like the leader of the thieves. Catching his sight he started charging at him while shouting. Byleth blocked the attack and sent him flying. He started charging again but in the last second he changed his course to the young woman who was only holding a knife, her axe broken by the combat. Despite his instincts telling otherwise he rushed to the position of the girl, preparing to block the might of the attack with his body, closing his eyes.

"Are you a fool?"

Byleth was confused by those words. When he opened his eyes he wasn't in the forest but in a place that looked like a temple. At the top of a long set of stairs he was stared by a tiny girl with green hair and brilliant green eyes.

"Are you a fool? What are you doing trying to block an axe with your body?"

"Who are you?"

"I am Sothis, if I remember correctly and you should be more grateful that I stopped the time for you!"

"Can you stop the time?"

"If I couldn't we wouldn't been having this conversation child. Why did you rush to help the girl? That move was risky at best and stupid at worst".

"I can't understand why but I did it"

"What kind of answer is that? Anyway you know what is going to happen when the time reassumes its course? You will find your death".

Shocked by the revelation Byleth was wondering if he was already death and the situation was just the product of his imagination.

"Can you return back in time?" If the girl called Sothis could stop the course of time if may be able to return to the past.

"Good question. I may be able to return back in time but my power is not unlimited. Don't make a fool of yourself this time. Your death might mean my own."

A brilliant light appeared around him and suddenly he was back in the outskirts of Remire. The thief leader was charging but this time his feint was quickly repelled by Byleth.

"Are you ok?" he asked to the girl behind him.

"Yes, thank you. Words cannot express my gratitude for assisting me".

"Nice move!" shouted Claude, who was running at them alongside Dimitri.

Suddenly the air was filled by the sound of horns.

"The knight of Seiros?!" muttered the leader of the bandits before retreating with the rest of his gang.

Byleth was preparing himself when his father voice interrupted him. "Don't worry, they are not our foes".

The apparent leader of the knights came to them to express his gratitude, when he suddenly stopped.

"I can´t believe my eyes. Is that you Jeralt!?"

Jeralt sighted. "Of all people you were the one to find me Alois?"

The man called Alois laughed in delight to his father´s answer. "Then you remember me! It´s been a while old man! You haven´t changed a bit! Wow you really look the same…"

"Enough of the small talk, your lost students are here".

"I´m very thankful for that, but I´m sure I´m not the only one who would be happy about hearing from you again. Why don't you come to the Monastery? By the way, is this young man your son?"

"I´m a member of the bandits" answered Byleth.

Alois laughed loudly while his father grinned briefly.

"Oh, so you have a sense of humor, interesting" said a voice inside his head.

Despite his surprise the voice continued. "Did you already forget about me? How cruel you are! Look, the puppies are waiting for you."

Understanding the meaning of her words Byleth excused himself and he went to the place where the three students were waiting. The man called Dimitri started to talk.

"Words cannot express my gratitude. Your show of strength was magnificent. I feel that your help would be crucial for the Holy Kingdom of…"

"Indeed it was impressive. You could be an important asset for the empire. By the way I shall tell you that I am the em…"

"Excuse me Edelgard, but I was the first talking to him".

"Look at them, fighting for you" grinned Claude. "I was going to take my time to persuade you but I guess I shall ask straightforward. Which country is the one you prefer the most?"

"Oh a difficult question murmured Sothis, but I think that the puppies are waiting for your response".

Byleth wasn't really interested in countries. In fact, they were all the same to him. As his father said, home is the place where you can sleep and eat with ease and that wasn't a fixed place in the life of a mercenary. But if he had to choose…

"The Adrestian Empire" said directing his sight to the girl called Edelgard.

"A wise choice indeed, the Empire, despite its weakened state it's a force to reckon compared to its offspring" said Edelgard, seemingly satisfied and maintaining his gaze.

"That's not a fair game Princess. I bet you were in front of the bandits just to call the attention of our savior" teased Claude.

"How dare you to assume such an inappropriate behavior" she replied to him, the lightest blush appearing on her cheeks. "It was only a coincidence that the son of Jeralt the blade breaker and former captain of the Knights of Seiros were here.

"The knight of Seiros uh? Quite a fearsome name" said Sothis.

"What are the knights of Seiros?" inquired Byleth.

"I am surprised that you haven't heard from them; despite your father been their leader. They are one of the mightiest forces in Fódlan" answered a surprised Edelgard.

"Anyway I hope that you can travel with us for the time being" said Dimitri, which had stayed silent until now.

"There you are son" said Jeralt while he approached them with Alois at his side. "Change of plans, we will be heading to Garreg Mach Monastery for the time being.

…

It only took a few days to arrive to the monastery. Byleth spent most of his time observing his companions. Claude was the most talkative of them, though his smile never reached his eyes. Dimitri talked from time to time in an exquisite manner, but Byleth felt that there was a tragic air around him. Meanwhile Edelgard spent most of her time silent, talking only when she was asked to. He sensed he was sometimes observed by her, with eyes that looked like they were trying to seek every possible information from him.

"Quite a company you have here" said Sothis, he was getting used to her sudden remarks. "Everyone is hiding something, but I guess that everyone has their own secrets".

Finally the forest gave way to a hill and in the distance he was able to see a monstrous building that he assumed it was the monastery.

"Garreg Mach at least" said aloud Alois.

The sun was still high when they arrived at the entrance. His father suddenly stood still, looking at a young woman just above them.

"Rhea", he mustered.

The woman had a wide smile and when her eyes met him they glowed brighter. He felt a strange sensation, a feeling of familiarity, yet that was impossible.

"Listen son" his father interrupted his thoughts. "I know you have a lot to ask about. It is true that I was once part of the knights of Seiros, but that is a story of the past and it wasn't that important. Anyway, it seems that we are going to have and audience with Lady Rhea."

"Must I go too?"

"Yeah, I´m sure she will want to thank you personally for helping the students of the monastery. Anyway be careful around her"

Noting the change in his voice, Byleth went with his father to the audience room, guarded by the famous knights of Seiros".

"Welcome home Jeralt" said Rhea, her green eyes contemplating the figure of his father. Alongside her there was a man with green serious eyes and green hair. "It is a great honor to meet a legend like yours mister Jeralt. My name is Seteth and I am the chief aide of Rhea".

"Nice to meet you"

"As you shall know I am not only here to thank you for your aide but to offer you again a leading position within the church. I have no doubts that the Goddess wishes to join our paths once again".

"I thought you would say something like that. Resisting makes no sense right?" sighted Jeralt.

"Of course. It seems that you have embraced fatherhood outside the monastery. What is your name, dear?"

"My name is Byleth" he answered, feeling the intense gaze of Rhea.

"A beautiful name indeed" Rhea smiled. "Perhaps your wife is here?"

Jeralt´s face darkened. "She died when she gave birth to him"

"I am sorry for my intromission. May she rest in peace. Anyway, I am confident that your son will feel this place like his new home for the time being. In fact, I would be honored if he could lend his services as a professor for the academy since we have a vacant due to the thief attack"

"Lady Rhea, is that decision wise?" asked Seteth seemingly surprised by her proposal.

"I agree with him. What are you going to teach? How to kill people?" said Sothis in his head.

Meanwhile Jeralt was sighting.

"If there is no other option we shall accept your offer" he said.

"Then it is done" said Rhea, seemingly pleased. "You will start from tomorrow. I will let you time to meet the rest of professors. You should also meet your future students since you will be tutoring them for a year. You will be charged with one of the three groups studying at the academy. I hope for the best".

"Wait a moment! Is this a kind of twisted joke?! How can you entrust a position of responsibility to a person who you have just met? You must have quite the charm… Anyway, good luck" said Sothis.

"Thanks for your support…" Byleth thought.


	2. Fated encounters

Byleth headed to the common room that he had with the other professors. When he opened the door his eyes met those of a middle aged woman wearing a revealing outfit.

"Oh my, what do we have here? Are you lost sweetheart? Are you seeking for my therapy?" said while teasingly blinking an eye.

"I am Byleth, the new professor" answered unaffected by the woman´s charms.

"Are you serious? How can it be? You are too young!"

"Apologies Professor Byleth, Manuela didn't pay attention to Seteth´s inform about you" said a gray haired man wearing a monocle. "Please allow me to present myself. I am professor Hanneman, a scholar of Crests, I wonder if you have…"

"I did pay attention, but he never told us that he would be so young!" responded Manuela. "Allow me to present myself properly too". I am Professor Manuela, ex songstress and currently working as a therapist here. You can come anytime to my place if you feel ill" said with a beautiful voice while winking.

Hanneman sighted. "You are going to make our new arrival feel uncomfortable. By the way, do you have a Crest? Crests are my field of study and I am always curious about the possibilities of discovering new ones".

"Crests?" said Byleth not understanding the meaning of that word.

"Do you really don´t know?!" exclaimed Hanneman. "Even a commoner would know about the system of crests! Where have you been all your life?"

"Your father wasn´t really focused on your education eh?" Sothis was laughing inside his head; it was evident that he had a lot to learn. "How can a teacher without knowledge guide a group of students?"

"Anyway,"Haneman continued. "Come to my office and I will tell if you really have a crest or not. And in case that you do not have you don´t need to worry. Crests are a rare sight these days".

"Professor Byleth, you should also get in contact with the students. Everyone wants to know who is the new teacher" added Manuela.

Byleth decided to go first to Professor Hanneman´s office.

"Extend your hand like this; it should take only a few moments".

A strange device was activated and in front of him appeared a strange symbol.

"So you really have a Crest, and one I´ve never seen! This is so fascinating!" Professor Hanneman´s voice sounded indeed excited. "If you don't mind can you take your clothes off? For scientific purposes of course"

Interpreting Byleth´s blank expression as a negative he quickly dismissed the idea. "Oh forgive me, that was excessive. I thank you dearly. I now have something to investigate. I will tell you as soon as I have discovered more about it".

Leaving the excited Professor, Byleth headed toward the main hall of the building. There he found the student he saved a few days ago, Edelgard. Noticing his presence she welcomed him with a gentle smile, her violet eyes searching his.

"I have heard that you are the new Professor. I congratulate you on behalf of the black eagles students although it is a pity that you won´t work for the empire".

"How many groups of students are in the monastery?" asked Byleth.

"There are three groups of students: the black eagles whose leader it´s myself, the blue lions whose leader is Dimitri and the golden deer whose leader is Claude".

"Eagles, lions, deers? Are you sure we are in a monastery? We only need dragons and we are set"

Ignoring Sothis´s voice he continued. "It seems that I can only choose a group of students, can you explain me more about your group?"

Seemingly pleased with the interest of the new professor Edelgard explained him the particularities of the members of the black eagles. "By the way Professor, even if I am the future empress of the Adestrian Empire you can treat me as any other student".

"Shall I call you by your name then?" he asked.

"Yes of course" she answered with a light smile on her face. I shouldn´t steal more of your time. I am sure you want to meet the other students, although I hope you shall choose me in the end".

"Choose me eh? This one is strong. I like it, humans are interesting creatures" Said Sothis.

"Thank you for your time, see you later Edelgard".

"The pleasure was mine professor".

….

The next student he found was the blue lion´s leader Dimitri.

"I am glad to see you well Professor. It would be a pleasure if you were our Professor this year. The students of our class come from the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus. I am sure they will give their best under your command".

"In a matter of days you have built an army of admirers" Sothis continued teasing.

Trying his best to ignore her, he listened to Dimitri´s explanation about the members of his class.

….

"Ey Teach, long time no see you"

Claude was waiting for him at the courtyard

"I bet you had enough fancy talk from fancy folks. I´m sure you will like the Golden Deer. We don´t care so much about nobility unlike others, well if you ignore Lorenz, and we are the most easy going here. Dimitri´s and Edelgard´s solemnity may be a burden to you. If you want I can introduce them directly!"

Claude´s smile was warm but his eyes told otherwise.

"This one wants you but is not completely sincere about his reasons. Although you could say the same about the others" Sothis commented.

"Thanks but I have enough information for today, I have only met the leaders and it would be unfair in that case".

"Oh I see, no problem Teach, I´m sure we will have plenty of time to get along. See you!"

…

Byleth returned to Rhea´s place.

"Was the meeting with the students productive?" She inquired.

"Yes" he nodded.

"It delights me to hear that. You shall now choose one house. You will turn into their mentor for a year. Of course that doesn´t mean that you won´t teach the other students, it only means that you will share more time with the students that you choose now".

"Before I decide I have a question".

"Yes?"

"Every class group is small, but I have seen students wearing the same uniform around the monastery."

"It seems that I forgot to tell you an important detail. The position that you have as a professor is the highest within our ranks and you are responsible of guiding the most important students, which are the future of Fórdland. The rest of the students have their own professors and are members of their respective house, but you won´t be teaching them directly".

"Understood" ("It seems that the monastery had the same inequalities of the outside world but I guess that that was inevitable" he thought).

"Can you tell us which is the group you want to teach?"

Byleth took a while to answer. Edelgard, Dimitri and Claude. "Which one should he choose?"

"Are you asking me? Everyone wants you to be their Professor, but their motives are still hidden. Which is the person who intrigues you the most?" Sothis said.

Listening to her words Edlgard´s face came to his mind. She was the least communicative of the three and he thought that her eyes were filled with a strong resolution yet she was at a world of distance from the rest. Furthermore, he found a strange connection with her, he wouldn´t have risked his life otherwise.

"So you have chosen the little rose. A rose covered in ice I might say. Although I can´t say that you are the apex of expressiveness. Go ahead, then".

Silently nodding Byleth answered.

"I choose Edel…the black eagles".

"Oh my, Lady Edelgard must have left quite an impression on you if you chose her before her own group" said a teasing Manuela.

"Forgive her Professor Byleth. Manuela just seems to fantasize too much, although if we take into account her list of failu…"

"Don't entertain Professor Byleth with such stories Hanneman. Do you want to choose your class now?"

"My bad, as an apology, I give you the right to decide first".

" Very well then. I choose the Golden Deer".

"Then I shall teach the Blue Lions".

"I am glad that everyone is happy with their decision" Rhea smiled. "I shall now explain to you the assignment of this month. You will have a mock battle with the other two houses. You only have a few days left but I am sure that you will get the best of your students" Her eyes fixed on him.

"This ends the meetings for today. Everyone, you shall now go to meet your students" Seteth said fixing his eyes on him, his gaze completely different to Rhea´s.

…

Byleth opened the door of the Black eagle's classroom. When he entered the class fell completely silent.

"So you have chosen me", Edelgard´s satisfaction was evident.

"I don´t think you are the main reason for that Edelgard. As the son of the Prime Minister of the…"

"Enough of your talk Ferdinand, I am sure that the Professor is not interested in the nobility quarrels of the Empire" Said a tall sinister man beside Edelgard.

"You were the one that repelled the bandits! I can´t wait to fight with you" said a high spirited man.

"Fighting first is not good Caspar. To hunt you need to watch first" said a purple haired girl with a small mark under her eye.

"Petra, I am sure that hunting is not the thing we are going to learn here. By the way my name is Dorothea, nice to meet you". Said a green eyed woman with a nice cap on her head.

"My bad Professor, as a noble I should have presented myself properly, I am Ferdinand von…"

"That will suffice Ferdinand, my name is Hubert and I am Edelgard´s personal aide".

"My name is Caspar and as I said before I cannot wait to fight with you!"

"Could you be quieter? I can't take a nap. My name is Linhardt. Now if you can excuse me I will return to sleep" Said a green haired man that looked exhausted.

Behind him was a little girl who panicked when he looked at her.

"Don't look at me like that! I have done nothing wrong, please don't kill me!"

"Bernadetta you don't have to worry. I´m sure that this handsome man won't try to hurt you" Dorothea reassured her.

"Professor I can assure you that they are normally quieter. My complete name is Edelgard von Hresvelg. As I told you before you can address me as any other student".

"I am glad to meet all of you. My name is Byleth Eisner. I will be your teacher during this year. I hope we can get along".

"By the way Professor, you look like you are about our age. If you don't mind can we address you as we address the rest of the students?" inquired Ferdinand.

"No problem" he answered.

"Fantastic! Would you like to have a pair of cups of tea with me?"

"Ferdie, even if you can address him as an equal that is too much" Dorothea said.

Byleth cleared his throat, and the class got immediately silent.

"Our first assignment is going to be a mock battle with the other two houses. We don't have much time left, so I thought that our first lesson will start tomorrow morning at 8 am. Get some sleep; tomorrow it's going to be a rough day. We will meet at the training room"

"The Professor is right; we must prepare ourselves for the coming mock battle. Allow me to assist you in every way possible"

"Thank you Edelgard. Enough for today. See you tomorrow".

Byleth headed towards his new room. It consisted of a simple yet comfortable bed and a desk. He was located next to the bedrooms of the commoners but according to Seteth there were no differences between the rooms of the commoners and the nobles.

Byleth recapitulated about the events of the week. A week ago he was a mercenary working alongside his father and now he was not only a professor but one of the highest ranked officials at the academy.

"What is the first impression of your students?" Asked Sothis

"It looks like they have completely different backgrounds. I wonder if they can work as a team" he thought. "I will have to personally test them"

"Very good then, you should go to sleep soon, I´m already tired, see you later Byleth"

"Good night Sothis"

The sleep came to him, still thinking about the best way to train their students.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I played the game in Japanese (both audio and writing) and it was a blast. The tittle of the game is completely different in the japanese version. It is called 風花雪月(wind, flower, snow and moon) and I think it holds a deeper meaning than the western version as it correlates to the routes. In my opinion CF represents the new and is related to the spring, yet the flower is red as if it were covered in blood, VW is the liberty and the summer but you don't know where it will bring you, AM would be the autumn seeking for truth yet implacable and SN would be winter beginning and end in an endless cycle.  
> It´s interesting how in the western version they are talking about three factions and in the original one the tittle doesn´t imply that. There are some other moments that are relatively flexible with the translation, but I will talk about them when they appear.


	3. The silver blades

The world was still dark when he woke up. With two hours of spare time he headed to the armory bringing with him all kind of training weapons. They were light yet sturdy. "With enough strength it could cause quite the damage" he thought.

After placing the weapons next to the walls of the training room he mentally reviewed how he will teach his students. Even without experience he felt he could handle his ground in anything relate to weapons. "Although I need to learn a lot of this world" he thought. After the training he planned to go to the library, he needed to learn to avoid being a handicap to his students.

The first to arrive was Edelgard, who instead of her elegant clothes she was wearing a hard leathered armor. Byleth nod in approbation. A battlefield, even if it was a training one wasn't a place to wear fashionable clothes.

"Good morning Professor Byleth. I am glad to see you well. I hope that you are happy to have chosen the Black eagles".

"I will confirm it now"

"I am glad to hear that" her eyes staring at him directly. "By the way, I know I´ve already expressed my gratitude but I cannot thank you enough for saving my life".

"No problem, it was my decision even if it meant my death".

Her eyes showed an instant of surprise after which she returned to her usual expression.

"Your words have a heavy meaning yet your face doesn't change a bit. I admire the confidence of your will".

Their conversation was interrupted with the arrival of Caspar, who was evidently excited about the training.

"Hey Professor, I´m going to give my best"

Alongside him came a still sleepy Linhardt

"Please be quieter Caspar, your voice is too annoying at this time of the morning"

"Come on Lindhart, you were planning to skip!"

"Ok ok you win; I don't want to have fruitless discussions"

The next to arrive were Hubert, Dorothea, Petra and Bernadetta. Dorothea and Petra were carrying her, while Hubert was walking at a prudent distance from them.

"Good morning Professor, we were searching for Bernie, it looks like she wanted to stay in her room" said a smiling Dorothea.

"I don't want to fight!" said a trembling Bernadetta.

"Now that everyone is here I will explain today´s practice. I want you to practice in pairs but first of all I want one of you to fight against me".

Looking at their faces it lingered a bit more on Edelgard. She was about to speak when Caspar rushed forward.

"I will fight against you Professor!"

"Very well, pick the weapon you prefer the most"

He picked a training axe.

"What about yours Professor?"

"I will fight with my hands"

The surprise was evident between their ranks, the only one who found the situation amusing was Hubert, who was silently laughing.

Caspar came charging at him shouting. His charged attack too obvious and Byleth evaded it effortlessly. He then punched his student to the face with all his might. Caspar fell to the ground unconscious. Everyone was silent.

Dorothea was shocked "Was it necessary professor?"

"In a battle you have to give everything to win. Good intentions won´t keep you alive for too long. Lindhart use your magic on Caspar".

"Harsh words for a Professor but appropriate ones for a mercenary I guess" Hubert grinned.

When Caspar recovered his sense he talked to him.

"Caspar, your actions were too obvious. If this were a real battle you would be already dead. And stop shouting, you will only reveal your position to the enemy".

"Understood Professor" said Caspar who still had a slight contusion on his face. I will try harder."

"Oh what do we have here? A training battle?"

Byleth turned around; standing next to a column was Jeritza, who always was wearing a mask. It was the first time he saw him grinning.

"I have a proposal to you Professor. How about we fight to demonstrate the risks of a real life combat? Sometimes watching a fight is more useful that being into one. Of course we won´t fight to death"

Byleth turned his gaze to his students. The most tensed was Edelgard who kept staring at Jeritza, although he couldn't understand why.

"I see no problem"

"Very well then. Take this" Jeritza threw at him a silver sword perfectly sharp.

After saluting his adversary the combat began.

As quick as the lightning the blades met and the dance of swords began. The surrounding world was engulfed in darkness as Byleth´s attention was centered only on the masked man.

His foe was a formidable adversary, he was quick, yet strong and his attacks were trying to breach through his defense.

In a blitz Jeritza changed the arc of his sword releasing a thrust directed to his neck that Byleth avoided by the skin of his teeth. It was clear that the purpose of the attack was to kill.

"Don't get yourself killed or I will be gone with you!" Sothis shouted

"I won´t" he thought

Immediately Byleth started a counterattack aimed at Jeritza´s leg, which he avoided easily, the blades quickly meeting again. Showing no hesitation Byleth used all his might against the masked man, who changed to a defensive position. His senses were awakening despite his everlasting blank expression.

The battle continued for what it looked like an eternity. Both adversaries weren't showing signs of exhaustion, though Byleth was feeling a strange itching on his right hand. Suddenly an explosion happened that knocked Byleth down. "Magic!" he thought.

With dust still lingering in the air Jeritza was already on him. "It can´t end like this!" he thought.

With all his might he moved his sword to stop the incoming attack and then it happened.

His attack broke both silver swords

"What?!"

Feeling an incredible power on his right arm Byleth pressed forward and with a convinced look on his face he said

"Allow me to demonstrate"

His punch sent his foe flying like a doll impacting towards a column.

Splitting blood Jeritza surrendered. "You are strong; I think I have bruised my rips. Thanks for showing your strength"

Byleth had never felt such power on his hand, when he looked at it he saw purple lines across it, resembling a geometrical figure, though it was disappearing. Byleth turned his gaze to his students who were completely silent. Hubert´s and Edelgard´s gaze caught his attention. Hubert was looking at him as if Saint Seiros had appeared in front of him. Edelgard´s was focused on his hand where the marks were already disappearing and then their eyes met. It was a strange expression, a mixture of surprise, admiration, hope and doubt.

"Professor! That was impressive" Caspar shouted.

"What kind of Crest do you have Professor? That power was really impressive" said Linhardt completely awaked.

"That fight was epic Professor. I couldn´t expect less coming from you" Ferdinand grinned "By the way, I think that you are the center of attention of the entire monastery".

Byleth looked around. Apart from his students there were knights, students of other classes like Claude and Dimitri, his father, Manuela, Hanneman and even Seteth. Seteth expression was similar to Hubert´s.

"Professor Byleth, Instructor Jeritza, that was quite a battle but it was an irresponsible act to have. A student could have been killed by mistake."

"My bad Seteth, I just wanted to taste the force of Jeralt´s son. He lives to the legend" Jeritza apologized.

"You should rest at the infirmary, Professor Manuela take care of him". As Manuela and Jeritza left the area Seteth took the broken blades. Looking at their sharpness he looked at him

"Impressive strength Professor. It's not an easy task to break not one, but two silver swords. I hope that this strength will be used to help your students at times of dire."

"I will"

"All of you, return to your positions, the training room is reserved for the Black Eagle´s students for the rest of the day".

Everyone but he and his students started to leave. His father was the last to leave, his face a mixture between pride and worry.

"Are you ok Professor? Are you sure you didn´t break your hand with that punch" asked a worried Dorothea.

"Don´t worry, I´m fine" he answered. He had no visible injuries and his hand was completely fine. We shall continue for the time being. "Form pairings and practice, don´t worry for now I will be keep watching". The phrase was meant to be a light joke but his blank expression made it look like a veil threat.

"I don´t want to be punched to death!" screamed Bernadetta.

"Don´t panic Bernie. I´m sure that the Professor won´t punch a cute face, right?"

"Maybe"

"You aren´t helping at all Professor" complained Dorothea.

The rest of the practice went smoothly. He trained individually with all his students, although he did his best to avoid leaving someone unconscious. Edelgard and Hubert were the more experienced but even Lindhart was able to give a minimum of resistance with the wooden sword he gave him and Bernadetta could show an incredible strength when she was feeling trapped, like a feral animal.

"What is the verdict of today´s class professor" inquired a bruised Ferdinand.

"You would have only died a few dozen of times"

"That…doesn´t sound very promising".

"Don´t worry. All of you have shown a good start. We will train the next two days and we will rest the day before the battle. It is over for today".

The students started to leave one by one, only remaining Edelgard and Hubert.

"Today was a really eventful day Professor Byleth. I am glad that we have you on our side. With your guiding I am sure we will overcome every obstacle whatever it may be" said Edelgard.

"You did well too Edelgard."

"As the future emperor of Adrestia Lady Edelgard´s strength can´t be questioned. Although I must admit that your strength was impressive"

"That´s right Hubert. I could only have a glimpse of it, but you also have a crest" said Edelgard her violet eyes focused on his. "Can you share with us the name of your crest?"

"I don´t know. Professor Haneman is investigating about it"

"An unknown crest?" Edelgard´s eyes grew wide open. "You may have the power to change Fódlan´s future on your hands".

"Lady Edelgard…"

"By the way" interrupted Byleth unaware of the tension of Hubert. "Do you also have a crest?"

"Yes, Professor, I have a minor crest of Seiros. Are you interested in the world of crests?"

"Not really"

"That is surprising; every noble family seems to be fixated on them, claiming they are gifts from the Goddess"

"The Goddess?"

"Are you working for the church without knowing about its origins?" Hubert chuckled. "We should stop this conversation here. We don´t want to be an enemy of the faith".

"What are you going to do now Professor?" Edelgard inquired.

"I will go to the library. I need to learn more about the world that surrounds me".

"It would be a pleasure for me if I could go with you. I may be able to help you if you have any questions"

"Thank you Edelgard"

"Hubert I need you to go to the town"  
"Understood Lady Edelgard" although he stared at Byleth, seemingly against leaving his master with Byleth.

Most of the trip to the library was made in complete silence. Byleth was used to walking alone and Edelgard didn´t seem to mind his silence. In fact he didn´t find uncomfortable her presence, quite the contrary.

"How are you feeling Professor? Your show of strength was quite impressive I must dare to say"

"I´m Ok, although I don´t know how that strength came to me"

"Do you think that this strength comes from your father or perhaps from your mother?"

"I haven´t seen that on my father and my mother is dead"

"I´m sorry for asking something like this. I beg your pardon" Edelgard´s face darkened a bit.

"No need to feel sorry about it. You didn´t kill her. She died giving me birth".

He didn´t know how to feel about her mother. Every time his father talked about her his father´s face brightened, yet he wasn´t sure how to feel about someone he couldn´t remember. He wasn´t even sure why he was explaining his background to Edelgard, yet he did.

"We have finally arrived"

The library was a wide room filled with books he was sure he wouldn´t be able to read, even if he dedicated his entire lifetime to it.

"Shall we get started?" asked Edelgard

"Yes"

"Take your time to read about it. We can talk about it after you know the basics"

After a while he directed his gaze to Edelgard, who cleared her throat.

"I think that the best approach to this matter would be to start from the beginning. Do you know about the origin of the crests?"

"As I can recall the crests are the gift from the goddess" He answered Byleth, in the process of understanding everything he had recently read

"According to the Church yes, they are. Although nowadays they are considered a symbol of status, mainly between the nobles"

"Are they important?"

"Good question" said Edelgard in a meditative state. "If you look at the nobles and the Church they are important, the disappearance of a crest from a noble house may mark the end of its nobility. According to some scholars the crests are inherited by blood, but sometimes they appear after decades of their last sighting or even between commoners. For a commoner having a crest allows them to climb in the social ladder. For a noble it´s a way to maintain his status".

"And for you?"

"You don´t waste your time making questions Professor" Edelgard giggled, yet her eyes were filled with a peculiar resolution. "I think that what matters is the person and not the crest they have. The crests are no more than a different way to discriminate".

Her bold answer reverberated inside him.

"I agree"

"Really?" her eyes wide open, though she quickly regained her composure. "Forgive my reaction Professor; it was just that it isn't a common sight to see someone who agrees with something like that. Perhaps is your mercenary background? If you don´t mind, keep it a secret between us, especially from Hubert."

"Understood"

"It´s getting late, shall we go to the dining room?"

"Go ahead; I think I will stay for a bit longer"

"If you say so" her voiced sounded a bit disappointed. "See you tomorrow Professor".

"Good night Edelgard"

He continued reading for hours. The more he read the less he could understand "Why does it feel incomplete?"

"Oh, Professor Byleth I didn´t expect to see you here that late".

The voice came from an old man with a gentle face.

"I am Thomas and I am here to serve you in matters relate to the library".

"Hello Thomas, I was just educating myself"

"I am glad that you are trying your best to improve your knowledge, is there something that I can do to help you?"

"I think there are gaps between the different books I have consulted. Is there a reason to it?"

"Well, as you know this library is the propriety of the Holy Church of Seiros, which controls which documents stay for the formation of the students and which stay within their ranks".

"Are they keeping information for themselves?"

His relaxed face darkened although it returned to its former self in an instant "I don´t mean it like that. The Holy Church has its own motives, there is no bigger danger that an ill-advised knowledge".

"Can I keep some books with me? I would like to have them at hand"

"Of course Professor, nothing makes me happier than seeing the flame of curiosity alight"

…..

Byleth walked through the empty aisles.

"Today has been an eventful day"

Hearing that voice, Byleth startled.

"Why are you so surprised? I´m Sothis, I live inside your head, remember? I was just taking a nap".

"I´m sorry"

"It doesn´t matter. You should take a nap too. Fighting to death and chatting with your Princess should have exhausted you".

"She is not mine"

"I was just joking, no need to feel so defensive"

Their mental chatter was interrupted when they heard someone coming closer. It was his father, Jeralt.

"Oh Byleth, what are you doing awake so late?"

"I was studying"

"Oh I see" he sighted. "I guess that it is too difficult to assume a completely different lifestyle all of a sudden. Are you hungry? Come to my place. It´s been a while since we could share a meal together"

"Of course"

"Your expression doesn't change at all but I´m glad to hear that from you" he said while rubbing his head.

Jeralt´s room was filled with different kinds of weapons and his personal armor.

"How are you feeling son? I saw that you had a fight with Instructor Jeritza"

"It was an example of life battle situation for the students"

"Fighting to death with silver weapons? That could have ended with one of you death. Dying on a battlefield is a risk. Dying on a training yard is a waste".

"Did you know that I have a crest?"

"Not at all but I can assure you that you are not the only one. Sometimes crest appear on individuals without a proper reason, but I doubt it is related to the gratitude of a goddess"

Hearing about it, Byleth was surprised that his father and Edelgard had a similar opinion, despite their backgrounds.

"I don´t care about it either"

His father laughed. "Be careful out there, our talk could be considered blasphemous. By the way how are your students doing?"

"They are not too bad; it is my first time guiding someone"

"That´s my fault. I took care of everything while you were focused on combating. Don´t push yourself too much, it´s only a mock battle.

"I promised them I will win."

"I hope for the best. I will be the judge for the battle but I won´t allow favoritisms."

"I know, what have you been doing?"

"Me? Paperwork, the Church wants to have everything under control and they love to have these little papers around, especially Seteth" he sighted again. "It´s getting too late, get some sleep".

"Good night father"

"See you son"

…

The next two days were followed by an intense training. Caspar wasn´t shouting every time he launched an attack and Bernadetta was trying her best to control her nerves. Even Lindhart was more awaken than usual.

The morning before the battle they just did a light exercise to avoid exhausting their forces.

"You have all done well, prepare yourselves for tomorrow"

"Thank you for your guiding Professor, I am sure that with you the victory will be ours" said Edelgard, a confident tone in her voice.

Byleth nodded "I won´t let you down"

Leaving his students chatting between themselves, Byleth wandered around the monastery until he arrived to a pond. There Alois was trying to catch some fish, without much success.

"Oh Byleth! how are you doing?"

"I´m fine, what are you doing?"

"I would like to say that I´m fishing, but I´ve been here for two hours and I have found nothing! It´s frustrating!"

"If you keep shouting like that you are going to scare all the fish"

"Egh, you are right" he admitted. "By the way, do you know how to fish? Your father loved to do it by when I was with him".

"I have tried it"

"Really, then teach me how to do it! I can´t be your protector if I don´t know how to fish!"

A little confused by his words, Byleth took the fishing rod. After a while it started shaking. With a fluid movement he caught a medium size fish.

"Impressive! As expected from Jeralt´s son! But I won´t lose, let´s make a competition"

It took three hours to end, Byleth basket was full while Alois´s basket was extremely light weighted.

"Oh, you are quite the man haha!" said Alois while patting his back, but his strength was excessive, making Byleth lose his balance, falling into the pond.

"Byleth! Are you ok, I´m sorry!"

"Don´t worry, it´s just water. I will go to change my clothes. Can you take the fish basket with you?"

"Of course! Leave it to me"

He headed to his room completely wet, the courtyard was completely empty, everyone seemed busy with the preparations of tomorrow´s battle.

"Oh, hello Pro…what happened to you?"

"Hello Edelgard, I was just fishing."

"Fishing? Anyway, you should take off your clothes as soon as possible Professor. I don´t want you to catch a cold".

"You are right" he said, starting to take off his shirt.

"Professor?! What are you doing?" Edelgard said her cheeks turning red by the minute.

"Taking off my clothes"

"I didn´t mean it know. That would be… inappropriate".

"Oh I´m sorry." Byleth stopped immediately. What are you doing here?"

Regaining her composure Edelgard faced him again.

"Me? I was just admiring the landscape before the sun sets. As the heir of the empire I am too busy, yet I can´t help but indulge myself from time to time".

"I see, rest well Edelgard" without thinking too much about it he patted her head as his father used to do to him when he encouraged him.

Edelgard flustered again.

"P-Professor?!"

"See you tomorrow Edelgard"

Byleth continued his path, while Sothis was scorning him

"What were you trying to do idiot! Trying to take off your clothes before a girl"

"Back when I was at the company there were no problems with something like that"

"A company of men! That´s completely different. You must realize that your behavior was dangerous"

"I´m sorry I will apologize tomorrow. Wait a moment. If you are inside my head then you can see me when I´m changing my clothes. Is that different?"

"What?! How dare you! I´m not a filthy animal you know! I have plenty of things to do instead of watching you haha"

He had never seen her like that, avoiding looking at him while forcibly laughing.

"Understood"

"I will take another nap. You should take a rest too"

"I will"

After changing his clothes he headed to his bed. It took him a while to get sleepy.

"What is this kind of sensation? Is this what they call excitement?"

Darkness engulfed him while he was thinking about tomorrow´s battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I´ve decided to write this story in English, because it´s the universal language. I´m sure there are going to be some mistakes (Linhardt´s name has been the bane of my existence every single time I write it). Some friends of mine asked me if I was interested in writing a localized version (for now in spanish and japanese). I´m a native of spanish and I have a good level of japanese, but I think I will stick to english for the time being.
> 
> I will publish new chapters on Fridays. I´m not sure if this site has alerts in case that someone pm me. I will reply the moment I see the message. I hope all of you have a great day!


	4. The mock battle

The sky was still dark when Byleth woke up. He took some bread and headed towards his student´s class. It was empty, although that wasn´t rare since he had woken up two hours earlier than expected.

"How are you feeling?"

"I´m fine. I just don´t want to let them down"

"You heard your dad. It is only a mock battle. Furthermore, it doesn't matter the results, but the way you travel to achieve them".

"You are right" his expression was the same, yet he found a bit of warmth inside him.

He spent the next hour preparing the weapons that his students will use in the imminent battle. When he was about to finish, he sensed a presence behind him. It was Edelgard, already wearing her battle armor with a crimson cape; which he has got used to seeing.

"Good morning Professor, how long have you been here?"

"I´ve been here for an hour to make sure that everything is ready. How are you feeling?"

"I have to admit that I´m feeling a bit nervous, not for you Professor, who has trained us the best you could, but for me. Even if it is a mock battle we may be eventually in a real battlefield and as their leader I will have to look for them all. It is my duty after all."

Her matured response moved him a bit, although it shouldn´t have surprised him. He knew very little about her, but he sensed she was a world apart from the rest of the students.

"Edelgard…"

"Yes Professor?"

"As you said, you are here just another student. I know that your burden is heavy, but that time won´t come until you have left this place. Until then I will be by your side and I will try to help you if you ever need me."

"Professor…" for the first time he could catch a glimpse of the true Edelgard behind the mask of the heir of an empire.

"My heartfelt thanks for your blunt, yet sincere words. I´m not used to this amount of sincerity. I´m glad that you treat me no different than any other student." Said with a faint smile on her face.

"By the way, I´m sorry"

"Sorry? About what?"

"About what I tried to do in front of you yesterday"

Edelgard blushed a bit

"You should forget about that and please Professor, don´t take someone´s words that literally, it would be an uncomfortable experience".

"Oh Edie, Professor, you are already here!"

"Good morning Dorothea" Byleth nodded at her.

One by one the rest of his students came to the class, Linhardt being carried by Caspar.

"Now that everyone is here, let´s review our strategy" Byleth said in an adamant voice. "Edelgard, Petra and I will be the vanguard of our force, Ferdinand and Caspar will protect our flanks, Bernadetta, Hubert and Dorothea will stay on the rear and Linhardt, you will stay at the center to maximize the use of your healing. Beware that we will face two different teams at the same time. Stay together and focused and victory will be ours. Understood?"

Everyone nodded; even Hubert had nothing to say against his plan.

"The time has come, let´s head outside".

The two other teams were heading to their respective positions.

"Good job Professor, I can sense the strength in your voice" Edelgard smile. "I´m sure this battle will fall on our side".

"I´m sure about that"

"Hey Teach, how are you doing?"

"Good morning Claude"

Claude was wearing light clothes and a wooden bow. "Speed over defense" he thought.

"I´m glad to see you well Professor. Your fight with Instructor Jeritza was a memorable experience." Said Dimitri, a solemn tone in his voice.

"It was eventful"

"Anyway Professor, try to be easy on us. I don´t want to be punched like that" laughed Claude.

"Why should he be easy on you? I´m sure you have some dirty schemes ahead for us"

"You are too harsh, Princess. You already have Teach, you don´t have to put more salt on the wound".

"I hope we have a fair fight. The Blue Lions won´t surrender easily"

"Students! Go to your positions! The battle is about to begin!" shouted his father standing on a hill.

"Good luck Teach!"

"I hope to have a memorable fight with you Professor, take care too Edelgard"

"The same for you"

Byleth and Edelgard headed towards the place where the rest of the students were waiting.

"The time has come, victory is at hand, let´s get it together" Byleth said, imitating his father when he encouraged the troops before a battle.

The sound of trumpets marked the start of the battle.

The first enemies to appear were Lorenz and Ignatz, from the Golden Deer House. Arrows were already falling on them. Ignatz may be feeble, but the amount of arrows he was shooting was something to remark.

"Petra to my right, Edelgard to my left! He can´t focus on everyone if we take distance between us. Ferdinand! Take care of Lorenz".

"I´m glad to face you on the battlefield Ferdinand. A worthy opponent indeed."

"It is the same to me Lorenz".

"Ferdie, focus, you can talk about your nobility later" Dorothea shouted while using magic against a white haired girl similar to Edelgard.

When they were about to catch Ignatz. A shadow appeared to the right of Petra. It was Raphael.

"Petra! Your right!" Byleth shouted

"She avoided the wooden axe by the skin of her teeth. Losing his balance, Petra saw an opening and she hit Raphael´s head with all her strength, leaving him unconscious.

"Good hit!" said Byleth while taking Ignatz down.

There was no sight of the Blue Lion´s students yet. He wondered where they might be when an arrow passed a few centimeters from his face.

"Professor! The forest!" Edelgard shouted.

"We can´t lend them time to react Petra, Edelgard, Caspar with me! Run in zigzag!" Arrows kept coming over his head but they were closing distance really quickly.

They weren´t the only ones who were charging. The Blue Lion´s students were charging at him, turning into a chaos when the two teams and the squad Byleth was leading clashed.

Byleth avoided an axe aimed to his head by Dedue, while Edelgard was holding her ground against Dimitri, who had a fierce expression on his face. Claude and the rest of the Golden Deer Students had changed their bows to training swords to defend themselves.

Dedue was a formidable opponent. His strength was impressive but he wasn´t as fast as Byleth. Hitting his hand with all his might he disarmed him and he knocked him down.

Edelgard and Dimitri were still fighting. Edelgard had the power of an axe but Dimitri had the reach of his lance and he wasn´t showing any openings. Then he disarmed her. Sensing the imminent danger Byleth rushed to her position and threw her his sword.

"Edelgard take it!"

Being surprised by the proximity of Byleth´s voice, Dimitri lost his focus for a split of a second, enough time for Edelgard´s fierce counterattack. Landing on the ground Dimitri surrendered.

"I wasn´t strong enough, I´m looking forward our next battle."

The battle between the Blue Lions and the Golden Deer had ended in favor of the Golden Deer, though only Claude and Hilda were remaining.

"It seems that we are the only ones left Teach" Claude winked at him.

Byleth start running towards him, when a fireball came from one side, he blocked it with his shield, which was destroyed as a result.

"Oh my, did you forget about me?" said a teasing Manuela.

"That means that Professor Hanneman might still be around here too" he thought.

It was at this moment the rest of his students came rushing at them. Caspar had a purple eye and he had lost his axe but he was shouting with all the strength of his lungs. Dorothea had lost her hat and Bernadetta was hurrying to avoid being left behind. Linhardt was carrying Ferdinand, who had contusions on his face, yet he had a proud expression on his face.

"And Hubert?" he thought.

The answer came as an explosion of purple light, followed by Hanneman´s scream.

Being distracted by the surroundings Byleth took advantage of the situation and punched Claude in the stomach, while Edelgard finished a complaining Hilda. Manuela simply surrendered, she didn´t want to have bruises on her face.

"And the winner of the mock battle is the Black Eagles" shouted his father, Byleth recognizing the proud tone of his voice.

"Good job the victory is ours and only ours!" shouted Edelgard a joyful expression on her face. Their eyes met. In the depths of her eyes he could see a mixture of pride, joy and admiration.  
Seeing his students with such brilliant faces, made him feel strange feeling of warmth. Perhaps this was the emotion his father felt the first time he fought alongside him.

…

"Professor Byleth"

"Yes Edelgard?"

"I just wanted to say that I´m glad that you have chosen to teach us. Even if the upcoming battles get tougher with you by our side I´m sure we will have nothing to fear".

"You did well too Edelgard" said Byleth slightly patting her fear

"Professor, may I ask why do you do this?" asked a slightly embarrassed Edelgard

"My father used to do it to me every time we won an important battle or just because he felt like doing it. Am I making you feeling uncomfortable?"

"Don´t worry about that, it´s just that I don´t see you doing it to the rest of the students."

"You are right, then I must pad everyone´s heads".

"I don´t mean it like that! I don´t mind if you do it to me, but don´t do it if Hubert is watching"

"Understood"

"By the way, we are going to celebrate our first victory at the academy. It would be an honor if you can accompany us".

"I will, but first I have an audience with Rhea".

"Ah ok then, see you later Professor"

After leaving Edelgard, Byleth headed to the archbishop´s audience room.

"Your puppies did a good job today huh? Patting everyone´s head really got me. I´m happy to see you are getting used to your new life, but you have a lot to learn about human interactions"

"I guess you are right"

Rhea was waiting inside the room, a brilliant smile on her face when she saw him.

"In a short period of time you have achieved a lot Professor Byleth, choosing you was the right choice"

"It was thanks to my students".

"Anyway, the real battle won´t be until the battle of the eagle and the lion, until then keep training your students as always" spoke a serious Seteth.

"The reason why you are here is to inform you about your next assignment"

"Assignment?"

"Yes, every month you and your students will leave the monastery to assist the different regions of Fódlan on behalf of the Church of Seiros. Your first task will be to assist the knights of Seiros in getting rid of a group of bandits who have established their base at Zanado´s valley. They are the same group that tried to kill your fellow students".

"Why do I have to bring my students?"

"As you can see, this academy is focused on the training of the future leaders of Fódlan. These assignments will allow them to develop their battle techniques and develop bonds between them and the Church for an everlasting peace in Fódlan".

"I see", although a part of him was uncomfortable with using his students as mere soldiers on behalf of the church.

"That will be your task for the following month. I hope great results from you" Rhea smile was sweet, but he thought she wasn´t looking at him but someone past him".

…

On his way back to the dining room Sothis was murmuring.

"Zanado, Zanado, I feel like I have heard that name before".

That term was also familiar to Byleth, may it be related to the dreams of war he had?

Lost in thought, he didn´t pay attention to the little girl who was on her way.

"Kyaa"

Recovering his senses he looked at a girl with green eyes and green hair, who had fallen to the floor due to the impact.

"I´m sorry" said Byleth while lending her a hand to get up.

"No need to worry, I was just lost in thought. Oh, you are the new Professor. I´m glad to have finally met you in person".

"Are you a student?" She looked about the age of the rest of his students, but he hasn´t seen her during the mock battle.

"No but I wish I could, it looks so fun. I´m the sister of…"

"Flayn! I was searching for you!"

Rushing to her place was Seteth.

"No need to worry brother. I was just talking with the new Professor. My name is Flayn and he is my brother".

"My name is Byleth, nice to meet you" a little surprised at the reaction of Seteth, compared to his usually composed self.

"I have something to discuss with my sister, please go ahead".

Leaving the siblings in what appeared to be a discussion he headed to the dining room.

….

"You are too late Professor!" Caspar cried "I was about to start without you"

His class was sitting, still waiting for him. Even Bernadetta was there, though nervously staring at imaginary threats.

"As the main responsible of our victory today it was our duty to wait for you" said a confident Edelgard

"You have quite the capabilities Professor, but of course Lady Edelgard´s aid was decisive to the victory" Hubert chuckled.

"What are we waiting for? Let´s eat!"

"Caspar, don´t eat like that I won´t heal you if something gets stuck" said an awakened than usual Linhardt.

"Forgive them Professor, even if they are nobles they don´t know their manners. I will show you how Ferdinand von…"

"Enough Ferdie, we are here to celebrate, right?"

"Fódlan´s celebrations are different to Brigid. In Brigid we dance around the fire after a good hunt".

"That sounds so exotic I would like to see it!"

"Of course Dorothea, hunting and celebrating are the best!"

"Everyone looks so excited, well I guess that for one day it doesn´t matter" Edelgard smiled. "For our victory and for the Professor!"

"For the Professor!"

"Look at them; they are happy thanks to you. I´m proud of you too!" said Sothis inside his head.

He felt a sudden warmth inside him. Perhaps this life wasn´t that bad, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have completed the DLC (Hard/Classic) and I intend to use it for this writing, with a few differences. It will take place after Jeralt´s death and it will be darker. I have something on my mind and I can´t wait to execute it.


	5. A silent oath

**5/1 Harpstring moon**

Byleth woke up, feeling a bit of dizziness. He had that dream again. To make things worse it was the day he had to tell his students about the month´s task. Changing his clothes he headed immediately to his class, still empty.

The first student to appear was Edelgard, as expected. She was wearing her usual uniform, although he could see a bit of eye bags around her usually faultless face.

"Good morning Professor Byleth. Do I have something on my face?" said noticing Byleth´s stare.

"Looking at your eye bags I´m sure that yesterday was a day to remember" said Byleth, feeling a bit of tension around his lips.

"It seems that I can´t hide nothing from you Professor. I must admit I enjoyed our victory to say the least".

"Today I will tell you and the rest of the students about our current task".

"What is it may I ask?"

"We have to kill the thieves who attacked you and the others on your way to the monastery".

"I see…" said Edelgard with a thoughtful glare. "It feels like yesterday when our paths met".

"Yes, everything has changed since then, I´m a mercenary no more and you are my student" feeling again a peculiar tension around his lips.

"Whatever it happens, I´m here to assist you, my teacher"

"Ey Professor, Edelgard morning!"

Caspar came smiling as his usual self, alongside him came Linhardt.

"Lecturing in the morning should be considered a sin… ahhh"

"Good morning Professor, you look as lovely as ever"

"You too Dorothea"

"If your expression changed a bit it would be better but thanks for the compliment anyway".

When everyone had arrived, Byleth started speaking.

"This month´s task will be the eradication of a group of bandits that has taken refuge in the ruins of Zanado"

Every time that name came to his lips he felt a strange feeling of longing and sadness. It may be related to Sothis. "It looks like she is taking a nap" he thought.

"Before continuing the explanation I have to ask. Anyone here has experienced killing a person?"

Byleth scanned everyone´s faces. The room has suddenly turned quiet. Only Hubert and Edelgard nodded. In the case of Edelgard he has seen it by his own eyes and in the case of Hubert he wasn´t surprised at all. The rest were completely silent.

"You don´t have to worry. It´s only natural to feel like that" his inexpressive face contradicting his words. "As a former mercenary I have two principles regarding the killing of other human beings: First of all no hesitation. If you doubt in the middle of a battle you can get yourself killed, or worse, you can get your own companions killed. Fighting is difficult enough to avoid handicapping yourself."

"The second principle is that killing is the last option you should have when facing someone. As a mercenary I have been contracted to resolve disputes between nobles when every other option but fighting was impossible. Apply that to your own life and you may be able to see another day".

"Professor, which one was your first?" Edelgard asked

"A savage from Sreng. A knife to the throat. I was nine."

The class grew even quieter. Edelgard´s eyes were completely focused on him as if she was reading a completely new novel. Hubert´s eyes were also watching Byleth with a different light.

"The life of a mercenary is a hard life, but I have always had my father´s support. I will protect all of you as my father did to me".

"Thanks Professor, it means very much to me…" Dorothea said, her usual jolliness nowhere to be seen.

"I will teach you where to hit to end everything quickly"

"Hyeek!"

"Calm down Bernadetta, if you don´t learn to hunt you will be the prey"

"Petra, I think we were talking about killing people not hunting them, but I guess that the ending is the same uff"

"To avoid unnecessary suffering" continued Byleth "the best places to strike would be the throat, the face or the heart. If you stab someone in the stomach it will probably be killed by it but it´s going to be agonizing for minutes. I will give my best to protect all of you, but you will have to listen to my command, always. If you disobey the punishment won´t be light."

"And Linhardt, your role as a healer will be indispensable. In your case fighting will be a last resort, focus on keeping the rest alive".

"Understood Professor I will do my best"

Byleth was satisfied of hearing decisiveness on his voice.

"I also think we need a secondary healer. Hubert you will practice with Linhardt, I hope you do your best".

"An interesting choice" Hubert chuckled "Understood Professor".

"Now I will explain to you the tasks we will have during this month: Bernadetta and Ferdinand to the stables, Caspar armor training, Dorothea choir and Edelgard and Petra will patrol with the Pegasus knights."

….

After the class everyone headed to their respective duties except Edelgard who came to his place.

"Professor, I´m ashamed to admit it, but I haven´t ridden on a Pegasus."

"You don´t have to worry I will ride with you until you feel comfortable"

"Oh, thank you"

"Let´s head to the place"

Petra was already mounting one of the Pegasus, looking at her confident face he was sure she had experienced with it.

Edelgard had a worried expression on her face so he decided to help her. He gripped her with both his hands and placed her atop of the Pegasus. He climbed behind her, reassuring her with his arms.

"You don´t have to worry today. I will be taking the reins".

"T-thank you my teacher"

Byleth couldn´t see her face but her ears were of a vivid red.

"Are you feeling alright?"

"Y-yes I´m just nervous"

"Don´t worry, you can grab my arms if you feel any dizziness while we are flying"

"!"

"Petra, go you first"

As Petra started flying he directed his Pegasus to an empty area next to the Pegasus´s stable. Then he quickly moved the reins and the Pegasus started running, after a few seconds they left the ground behind. They were flying.

Edelgard didn´t scream whatsoever, yet he noticed her grip on his arms "She is strong"

"How are you feeling?"

"Better, thank you"

He couldn´t see her face but he felt her body relaxing a bit.

"I´m glad to hear that"

"May I ask you why you chose me for this? In the case of Petra it was only natural since she has already ridden Wyverns back in Bigrid, but in my case… Why did you choose me?"

"As you have said before, your life is going to be full of burdens. I thought that feeling the freedom of the sky was the best way to make you forget about it for a moment."

"My teacher...thank you for your attention" her ears turning red again

"Edelgard, are you sure you are ok? Your ears are getting red"

"My!? Please don´t look at me, please focus on the Pegasus he is waiting your instructions!"

Despite his curiosity he acted as Edelgard begged him and focused on the trajectory of the Pegasus. They spent the rest of the travel contemplating the landscapes from the highs.

….

"Thank you for today Professor, it was a wonderful experience".

"I´m glad to hear that. We will keep practicing as today, unless you want to change it".

"You don´t have to worry. I will do my best to learn. Besides, if you are by my side there is nothing to fear" Edelgard said with a gentle smile. Her smile made him feel a little ache on his chest.

Heading to his room Sothis voice assaulted him

"How was today? I´m sorry I was taking a nap until now"

"Today was a really good day"

"I dare to say so, you look brighter? Please tell me why"

"I was training with my students"

"You feel like this only because of that? How boring!"

"I will be taking a nap soon"

"Oh that is something that I can agree to!"

…..

**5/15**

His students were making progress. Knowing the task ahead they were doing their best. Even Linhardt was focused on the task ahead. When he asked to him he answered

"I guess that it would be more troublesome for me having you mad at me. Don´t over think it too much" he said while yawning.

Today was his free day and he was wondering about what to do.

"You know that you can leave the monastery from time to time, your puppies need a rest too so I don´t think they will be missing you for a day"

"I have already bought provisions and weapons for the upcoming battle Sothis"

"Then explore your surroundings, if I could move by myself I would expend the whole day outside enjoying the sun"

Perhaps it wasn´t a really bad idea.

He headed to the Pegasus's stables. When he entered the stable he was welcomed by familiar noises. The Pegasus there had grown fond of him. Even Edelgard was feeling at ease with these incredible creatures.

He chose his favorite and rode him to the exit, after a short run he was in the sky. There were no clouds in the sky and the world under him was covered in a vivid green. As the monastery grew smaller he could see hills and lakes under him. The lands around the monastery where without a doubt fertile. Despite his efforts, he hadn´t found information relate to the foundation of the monastery yet. The place had an aura of mystery surrounding it, but he couldn´t dare to ask Rhea directly about it. In comparison to Seteth she had placed her trust in him, yet he couldn´t stop wondering why.

"Stop daydreaming, this is a good place to land!"

The place that Sothis was talking about consisted in a small lake hidden from the outside by a small group of trees. He landed his Pegasus and walked to the lake, where he started fishing.

"I guess that this is Alois´s fault" he thought

He has taken fishing as a hobby, it helped him to relax his mind after hours of lessons and he could give the fishes to the kitchen´s staff. Today though, he hadn´t picked any bucket so any time he caught a fish he released it. Sothis was silent but he knew she was awaked. He felt comfortable with her

"I guess that it´s only natural to feel like this if you are always with me"

"I guess so, but I´m even gladder that you have found a place to stay. The children you teach are preparing for a tough fight, but it is only human to have the need of finding time for yourself. Don´t push yourself too much about it Byleth. You will overcome this task with your students".

"I will do my best for them too"

"I´m glad to hear that, your solitary life as a mercenary may have come to an end. Forgive me, but I will be taking a nap. This is the perfect place to do it".

"Sleep well"

…

It was already dark outside when Edelgard left her room to get some fresh air. She felt exhausted after speaking with Hubert for the last hours. There was also the matter of the bandits. They had failed their task and she couldn´t allow herself to leave them alive.

"I guess that I overestimated my skills back then". To avoid being framed by the attack she had to be there, but by bad luck her axe shattered and she only had a knife to protect herself. And then she was saved by him, not because he knew her, but because he wanted to and she was moved by that. She wondered if her teacher would be an asset to her plans, but it was too soon to know. The only thing she could sense was that her teacher was an honest being.

"At least one problem will be over soon" she thought.

Even if it was dark she could see perfectly thanks to the full moon in the sky. She enjoyed the fresh air of the night. It helped her to cast aside her worries and her fears. "My brothers and sisters I will make sure they will pay, until then…"

"Edelgard"

"Professor? What are you doing riding a Pegasus?"

"I´ve been the whole day outside, and you?"

"I was just enjoying the fresh air".

"Is there something worrying you?"

Her lilac eyes met his. His serene gaze made her feel comfortable yet she knew she couldn´t trust him her inner secrets, at least for now.

"Nothing you should be worried about my teacher".

"I see, if you ever feel the need to talk with me don´t hesitate".

"I´m glad to hear about it but I can´t keep you by myself or the rest of the students would be jealous" she giggled

"I know, everyone is making great efforts for the task ahead." He said that while looking at the moon. "Is he proud about us?" she wondered feeling a bit of relaxation at the mere thought.

"Are you going to stay here?"

"Just a bit longer my Teacher"

"In that case take this" he said while handing her a Carnation.

"My teacher, how did you know I like this flower?!"

"I didn´t but now I know" he said his stoic face looked a little more relaxed than usual

"I´m happy to receive this from you, but may I ask why?"

"You have done a great job with the Pegasus, in no time I´m sure you will be riding alone and then…"

"And then?"

"I can show you the place where I´ve picked this flower"

Feeling the heat on her cheeks she avoided his gaze.

"I feel honored my teacher, I will keep practicing to make that day come true"

"I´m looking forward it" he said while patting her head

"…!"

"Good night Edelgard, see you in the class"

"Good night Professor…"

While she looked at the moon she thought "maybe it´s not too bad to indulge myself a bit, even if Hubert disapproves."

**5/16**

"Professor Byleth"

"Yes Edelgard?"

"I would like to practice my sword skills with you if you have time to spare"

Byleth looked at the sky, the sun was still high so it won´t be a problem.

"I don´t mind, but I haven´t reserved the practice ground".

"Don´t worry I have already reserved it in advance" Edelgard smiled "Shall we go?"

"Yes"

They headed towards the training grounds. Edelgard took one of the wooden swords and a shield while Byleth picked a two handed sword.

"Beware I won´t restrain myself"

"That´s why I wanted to practice with you since your battle with Instructor Jeritza" she smiled "I wanted to learn more about you to improve as well"

Their swords met. Even if the swords were made of wood the wood was sturdy enough that they could cause grave injuries depending on the area hit by the blow.

As expected, Edelgard´s sword battle style was noble like. In comparison, his style may look unpolished but no battles have ever been won by looks alone.

He released a full blow to her right but Edelgard raised her shield in time. The impact cracked a bit the shield but Edelgard´s small frame resisted the impulse. "She is strong despite her size" he thought.

Now it was the time for Byleth to stop the upcoming swing. Using his own blade as a shield he blocked the attack and with another swing he drew distance between them. The greatsword had the length it´s one handed counterpart lacked and he intended to exploit that advantage.

Blow after blow both sides exchanged hits for 30 minutes. Edelgard had the strength and she had improved her resistance, but she was reaching her limit. Her sword was getting heavier.

"You fight quite well Edelgard"

"That is thanks to you my Teacher"

He charged at her, Edelgard was already raising her shield but in the last second he changed his direction. Hitting with all his strength the blades met but Edelgard´s broke due to the brutality of the hit. Surprisingly Edelgard used her shield to counterattack, the following impact rendering both the shield and the greatsword useless, but Byleth didn´t back down. He pushed her to the wall grabbing her by the neck, their faces a mere inch apart.

"The battle is over"

Their eyes met, focused on each other. Being so close Byleth could sense a nice fragrance coming from her, even though they were both covered in sweat.

"My teacher…"

"Yes?"

"You are still grabbing me"

He released his grab from her; the mark of his hand was completely visible on her white neck. Feeling remorse he caressed the area.

"…!" Edelgard´s face was turning red by the second.

"I´m sorry for that. I overdid it."

"It, it´s ok I was the one who wanted to fight with you after all"

"Hey Teach, I was looking for you I wanted to… oh!"

"Claude?!"

"Hello Claude" said Byleth in his usual tone.

"I´m sorry to interrupt, so this is the secret weapon of the empire?" said Claude while laughing

"I just asked my teacher to practice to me, don´t get the wrong impression!" said a flustered Edelgard

"If you said it that way you are getting the opposite effect" Claude smiled

Recovering her composure Edelgard replied "I won´t fall for it Claude, what kind of matters do you have to discuss with the Professor?"

"I just wanted to practice archery with him and with enough time I want to bring it to the Golden Deer" Claude winked

"Professor Byleth is and will be the teacher of the Black eagles, I thought that matter was already settled" said Edelgard while touching her hair.

"I know, but from time to time wouldn´t it be ok? Professor Manuela is good, but Teach is getting famous for his training methods. Sharing is caring."

"I wouldn´t mind but my priorities are first with my students".

"Of course Teach, but I´ll consider it a win. I´m looking forward to having you practicing with my group someday, don´t worry Edelgard I won´t steal him from you"

"I don´t like at all the way you are saying it but ok. Thanks for the individual session my teacher. It was eventful"

"The pleasure was mine, take care"

After Edelgard left, Claude sighed

"You are really strange Teach. Nobles and commoners are all the same to you. Some people would consider your way of handling everyone dangerous"

"You may be right, but while you are all here I will treat all of you the same. In our mercenary group commoners and nobles fight alongside the other and shared the bread and the salt without any problems".

"You are right Teach, being a noble doesn´t mean you are entitled to be treated differently. If you could tell that to Lorenz it would be of great help".

They kept chatting and shooting arrows until the sun set.

**5/28**

As the final of the month approached their student´s efforts were giving results. Linhardt and Dorothea´s magic capabilities had increased notably; Hubert was capable of being a healer in case of emergency, Bernadetta was able to resist better her nerves thanks to his interactions with the horses, Ferdinand´s lance capabilities were improving as well and Petra and Edelgard´s capabilities were showing increasing results. Even Caspar was able to control his shoutings from time to time.

"We will depart from here tomorrow morning. Zanado is close enough to the monastery but we will be outside for a few days. Prepare your armors and weapons. I will bring the provisions. The knights of Seiros will be close to us in case we need them, but remember that this task is ours to complete"

"Understood Professor!" As everyone left Edelgard remained at her place.

"Professor Byleth can I speak to you?"

"Of course Edelgard you can speak with me at any time"

"It´s been already a month since you assumed your position as the Professor of the Black eagles and I thought this would be appropriate for you as symbol of my gratitude" said while handing him a silver dagger with a crimson handle with the imperial eagle marked on it.

He was surprised and happy about it

"Thank you very much; it must have cost a lot"

"You don´t have to worry about it, you have done so much for me and the others that I wanted to reciprocate: Besides, you have already gifted me with a flower"

"I will gladly use it" Byleth said while examining the blade. "If you don´t mind I would like to return your favor someday. When is your birthday?"

"It is the 22nd of Garland´s moon" said with a gentle smile. "May I know when is yours?"

"It is the 19th of Red Wolf Moon"

"I will certainly remember it, by the way Professor how old are you?"

Byleth didn´t know how to answer that question. He really didn´t know his age, feeling a bit of embarrassment he admitted

"I don´t know"

"You don´t know?!" Edelgard was surprised "You should ask your father about it. It is only strange to ignore your own age, although you don´t look too much older compared to us".

"I will after he returns" Recently his father has been busy with various tasks in the Leicester Alliance. "How old are you Edelgard?"

"I´m 17 years old".

"Then your next birthday will mark your official pass to adulthood. Anyway, I will remember it and I will keep good care of your present, he said while slightly rubbing her hair."

My teacher, why are you so gentle?" she asked her cheeks slightly red.

"I´m not that gentle, I was a mercenary after all".

"Even if that´s true you are harsh, but no cruel and you help not only your students but also the rest… and you treat me not as the future emperor of a country but as Edelgard von Hresvelg and I cannot thank you enough for that".

"It´s only natural, after all you are not a position but a person"

Her eyes grew wider with a great feeling of gratitude. Feeling her gaze he couldn´t avoid feeling a bit of warmth inside him.

"I will see you tomorrow, take care and prepare your things"

"Of course Professor I will be prepared for the upcoming battle"

**5/29**

His students marched at the center of the column. The sun was high and there were no clouds in the sky. The path to Zanado crossed between mountains so their advance was slow but steady.

"I´m going to give them a good beating" shouted Caspar

"If you shout like that you will alert everyone and I don´t want to be surrounded by enemies Caspar" Linhardt said

"Fighting or hunting silence is important to succeed"

"I know Petra, but if I don´t really feel like fighting if possible, but I guess it is unavoidable"

"Indeed Dorothea, but you don´t have to worry. As a member of the house of Aegir I will protect you"

"Thanks for your offering but I can handle by myself"

"You really don´t like me don´t you"

"I just want to return to my room! The outside is scary".

Hearing his students chatter Byleth couldn´t avoid feeling a bit of warmth inside him. Even if they were discussing they have grown as a group. Only Hubert and Edelgard remained silent, but looking at Edelgard´s faint smile he sensed she was feeling the same way.

…..

"We will camp here. The knights are going to block the remaining roads to Zanado. Tomorrow we will face an enemy without a route to escape. Rest as tomorrow will be a hard day".

After everyone went to sleep Byleth stayed looking at the flames while sharpening his sword. The sound of the whetstone helped him to remain focus on the plans for tomorrow´s battle.

"I will protect all of you" he promised while looking at his silver dagger.

The dawn came to him next to the fireplace, only ashes witnesses of his silent oath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I envy the flexibility of the Japanese language. You can say the same thing in such different ways. For example: delicious is 美味しい (oishii). If you were to say "it was delicious" you could say something like this: 美味しかったです(formal) 、美味しかったの (sounds like Edelgard, feminine)、美味しかったわ (more feminine)、美味しかったですの (Flayn)、美味しかった (informal neutral) etc. I´m sure that most people here played the English dub version and I´m not implying that is wrong, but I wanted to point out that there are some elements that regrettably get lost in the translation.
> 
> Sorry for the language lesson!


	6. Ghosts from the past

"The day has come. Our objective is to finish off all the bandits taking refuge in the valley. We must leave no one alive, orders from the archbishop. There is only an entrance so they will fight to the bitter end, let them come at us until we have weakened their front lines. Edelgard, Caspar, Ferdinand and Petra with me. Linhardt you will stay in the middle of the formation. Hubert, Dorothea and Bernadetta the rearguard is yours. Understood?"

"Yes Professor!" everyone shouted.

The enemy scouts have already alerted their forces. Archers and thieves carrying swords and axes were the main forces of the enemy.

"Byleth, for the upcoming battle I can let you the power to return back in time but beware that there are limits to it. Use it wisely". Said Sothis

"Thanks, I will try to avoid using it" Byteth redirected his gaze to everyone. "Keep the position and don´t dare to disobey my command!"

The enemy thieves were charging against them. Everyone was standing still waiting his orders, when they were about to come to them he shouted "Fire!"

The air was suddenly filled by magic, dark magic and arrows. The charging thieves were in flames or in a panicked state.

"Now charge!"

His objective was a brigand, who was trying to keep his distance from his burning comrades. He charged at him, but his movement was too predictable allowing Byleth to quickly disarm him.

"Please no…!" but he couldn´t finished his sentence, his chest pierced by his sword.

As life left him, Byleth switched to his next target, an archer hiding in the bushes that was trying to hit Ferdinand. In a close encounter the enemy had no chance. Piercing his neck he took the fallen enemy bow and arrows, it may be useful in the future. He repositioned himself to see the landscape of the battle. Ferdinand was exchanging blows with another thief, his armor bruised but no visibly injured. Edelgard was making a quick job of his enemies and Caspar was in a berserk like state.

The mages were advancing positions when suddenly one of the fallen enemies got up and backstabbed Linhardt. Byleth rushed to him while Hubert casted his magic against the thief, killing him.

"Hubert healing! Linhardt, stay with me!" but he already realized that it was too late, his hands covered in his student´s blood.

"I´m sorry Professor but I´m too sleepy to continue…"

"I need to change the outcome!" he thought and as he thought it he was standing in the bushes alongside the archer´s corpse.

Running as fast as he could he arrived to the bridge when the apparently dead thief was getting up. He blocked the attack and cut off his hand. As he was screaming he pushed him over the bridge to his death.

"Thank you Professor, that was close" Linhardt´s face was completely pale.

"Hubert, Dorothea, Bernadetta make sure that they stay dead!"

"It will be a pleasure" Hubert chuckled

Byleth rushed again to the frontline, there were two ways to arrive, his students were next to the left path, but the enemy´s reinforcements were taking positions at the front.

"They are going to surround them" he thought.

"Come back they are too many of them!"

But it was too late, Edelgard, Ferdinand and Petra hearing his command backed down, but Caspar was too close to the frontline. He had no other choice but to use again Sothis´s powers.

Having mere seconds to avoid the outcome he rushed to Caspar´s position.

"Push forward we have to break their lines or we are done!"

They charged. Byleth was taking every enemy he could, feeling a familiar itching on his right hand, but they were too many. Dozens of bandits were completing a circle against them. And then he saw it. One of the archers was about to take a shot a point blank range against Edelgard.

"No!"

And then it activated again, his mysterious crest.

With an unnatural strength Byleth rushed to Edelgard´s position releasing death on everyone. Arms, limbs even full bodies couldn´t stop him.

"A demon! Shoot him down!"

He felt the impacts but not the pain. The enemy was panicking, but he showed no hesitation. And then the landscape of the battle changed.

He wasn´t in the valley, but in a city engulfed in flames. He was witnessing the slaughtering of his brethren. The enemy soldiers noticed him and immediately charged at him but as quick as they came they died. A green haired man and a girl came to his place.

"Cichol, Cethleann! I´m glad to see you well!"

"There are too many of them Seiros! We must leave the city!"

"I refused, I have to save her!"

"Seiros…" Cethleann´s face covered in tears.

"It breaks my heart to say it, but she is gone, staying here any longer will kill us all"

"It can´t be! Who?!"

"Me"

The voice came from a white bearded man. He was covered in green blood and he was carrying a golden sword covered in green blood"

"How dare you to….!"

"Professor?"

He came back at his senses. It was Edelgard. Without thinking it twice he embraced her

"I´m glad to see you alive"

"My teacher… I´m sorry to have worried you like that. But first we have to take care of your injuries."

Then he noticed the arrows. He was hit at least 5 times. Without a second thought he started picking them one by one.

Edelgard´s face was shocked and her face grew pale when she saw the mark on his hand.

"My teacher, how do you have?" she said while gently touching his right hand.

"Professor, that was impressive!" said an impressed Caspar.

"Indeed, taking by himself 30 enemies. I cannot open my eyes"

"You have to be strong Linhardt. The strong survive and the weak perish"

"I know Petra but I can´t blame him. These stains will take an eternity to leave" complained a pale Dorothea.

"They are dead, they are dead…" a rigid Bernadetta was muttering.

"Don´t worry Bernie, it´s all over, right Professor?"

"Yes" he said while taking another arrow.

"Linhardt! The Professor is injured, use your magic!"

"Yes… You are covered in blood! I can´t…"

"Man up Linhardt" Caspar shouted

"Ok, ok" said Linhardt as he approached his place.

"It cannot be… your injuries are just superficial, how can it…" then he looked at his right hand, that Edelgard was holding tightly. "Can it be the power of your crest?"

"It doesn't matter if it is, if I can use it to protect all of you then I will use it".

"Professor…thanks" Dorothea said, seemingly moved by his words.

"Impressive words Professor, but you shouldn´t abuse this kind of power, it may have drawbacks, if you don´t mind you should go to see Hanneman" continued Linhardt.

"By the way, where is Hubert?" asked Caspar

"I´m here and with me the leader of this group of bandits or what is left of him" he chuckled

Their leader was coughing blood and marks of magic could be seen around his body. When Byleth approached him he panicked.

"You are the monster who slaughtered my gang! Are you going to kill me too right?" He looked to the rest of them. "Filthy nobles, you should all die, scum!"

"A person with no moral shouldn´t be the one to give judgment so lightly" said Edelgard while approaching. "You will pay for your crimes now"

"I will see you in hell!" using his remaining strength he tried to stab her in the stomach, but was blocked effortlessly by Edelgard, who crushed his foe´s chest with her axe.

"I shouldn´t have listened to that idiot…" he said as his dying breath.

"Who?" Byleth thought.

"This place is stained in red we should leave before it gets dark" said an exhausted Ferdinand.

"I have to agree with you on that matter, the corpses may attract unwanted visitors to this place"

"Hubert is right, all of you return to the bridge. I will come with you in a moment"

As they returned the way they came Byleth looked at his surroundings. He was surrounded by ruins of a seemingly extinct civilization, yet his thoughts returned to the vision of a city engulfed with flames. "Was it an illusion?"

"I think that you saw the past" Sothis voice emerged from the depths of his head. "A past to which I feel strong emotions, yet I can´t remember why. This place brings me joy and sadness, but the reasons are unknown".

"I feel the same but I haven´t been here and it appeared when my crest activated"

"That crest of yours is stronger that the rest, but you should control it. That kind of strength on a mortal body will undoubtedly affect it. It seems that it manifests when you or someone you care about it´s in great danger, but you shouldn´t rely on it, it may fail you"

"I will train harder to avoid it and thank you, without you Linhardt and Caspar would have died"

"You are welcome, but don´t rely on my powers, there is a limit to what I can do and if I reach my limit there is no other way but to accept the reality of the outcome".

"I will keep that in mind"

"Very well then" she smiled "You should return, they are waiting for you"

And without looking back again Byleth returned to the place where his students were waiting.

….

The return to the monastery was made in complete silence. His students were exhausted and the scenes of the battlefield had left quite an impression on them, mainly on Dorothea, Linhardt and Bernadetta.

It was already dark when they arrived to the monastery, after half a journey of travelling on fresh horses, courtesy of the knight´s of Seiros.

When they arrived to the gates of the Monastery Byleth congratulated his students.

"You have done a great job. I know that many of you have experienced the hardships of a real battle for the first time but don´t think to hard about it. For today take a bath and rest. Tomorrow we won´t have any classes".

"Thank you Professor, I´m looking forward the next battle!"

"Seriously Caspar? At least I can rest tomorrow. I appreciate it Professor" said Linhardt.

"Professor, you should take a bath too. Your precious hair and clothes are soaked in blood. You really look like a demon" said a worried Dorothea

"I will, but first I must inform the archbishop about the results of the task. Good night to all of you"

Everyone headed to the baths, although Edelgard´s gaze lingered slightly longer on him before following the rest of the students.

He headed towards the great hall where the archbishop held her meetings. Rhea was accompanied by Seteth, who was surprised by Byleth´s appearance.

"It seems that you defended your students faithfully Professor" Rhea smiled, not looking especially shocked by his appearance.

"I appreciate your diligence, but you are allowed to change your clothing if it´s needed. I don´t want Flayn to see you in such state."

"I apologize"

"You will be rewarded by your efforts, but I´m afraid that I have bad news to tell you. Lord Lonato, a noble from the Holy Kingdom, has risen in arms against the Holy Church. Such defiance shall not be left unpunished. You will assist the soldiers of the Church who will go to suffocate the rebellion. That will be your task for the next month. I command you to return here tomorrow morning to have a meeting with the leader of the expedition".

"Should I take my students with me? They are physically and mentally exhausted from today´s battle"

Rhea smiled "I appreciate your worries from the bottom of my heart, but your students as the future rulers of Fódlan shall learn to not oppose the Holy Church. Those who pull out their weapons against the Church are acting against the Goddess itself. Such behavior cannot be taken lightly".

"Why is he opposing the Church?" a mere Lord couldn´t possibly oppose the might of the Church. It was a battle already lost.

Rhea´s expression darkened "I´m afraid that he holds a grudge against the Church as a consequence of the execution of his son due to his involvement in the Tragedy of Duscur. We will speak more about the matter tomorrow. For now keep your training as usual. I have high expectations of you".

"Understood"

As Byleth left the room he was covered in doubts. A rebellion without hope, the Tragedy of Duscur, the necessity of punishment of those who oppose the mighty Church. There were a lot of elements that he didn´t understand. "I guess that I must investigate about them, but I first I should see Hanneman" he thought.

Byleth headed to his office and he knocked the door. When Hanneman opened the door he couldn´t hide his surprise.

"P-Professor Byleth, what happened to you?"

"Don´t worry, it´s not my blood, I wanted to talk to you about my crest"

"Is this related to your crest? Take a seat. I´m still investigating about it, but I haven´t arrived to a conclusion of my satisfaction. Oh, if you don´t mind I will prepare some coffee. I´m sure we will need to be fully awaked."

Byleth explained the events of the battle while sipping his cup.

"So when your crest activated you gained an impressive strength and the wounds were quickly regenerated? That sounds almost impossible to me. Normally a crest will grant only one quality, for example a bigger strength or magic power. However, in this case, it´s granting you two especially useful skills. They may correlate to each other. A strength far superior to a human body will eventually consume it, but it´s regeneration may reduce the negative consequences. Can you manifest your crest by yourself?"

Byleth extended his hand as he had seen other students do but nothing happened. Hanneman nodded.

"It seems that you cannot control your crest. In a relaxed scenario most crest bearers students can manifest their own crests, but when they are subjected to stressful situations, for example a battle, they can´t use the power of their crest at its finest. In your case it seems the other way around. Only when you are in a dire situation your crest reacts, but I wouldn´t rely on it, your crest seems particularly independent from your body. It is better to trust your own skills than a power that may not arrive. Besides, I´m not sure if there are no consequences to its activation. Have you sensed something different after it activated?"

Byleth was about to tell him about his vision, but Sothis interrupted him "It would be wiser to be quiet about it. He may think you are growing mad."

"Nothing particularly relevant" he lied.

"Oh I see" Hanneman looked disappointed. "Anyway, if you feel any changes on your body don´t hesitate to come to my place." He looked to the clock. "Oh it´s already three o´clock and you are still covered in blood! I thank you sincerely for coming here, but you must be tired. Clean your body and your mind and take a rest."

"Thank you Hanneman"

….

The monastery was completely silent as one should expect. Byleth was meditating in the baths about the events of the day. His thoughts continuously returned to the vision of the past he had. He wasn´t him, the green haired people referred to him as Seiros, but he couldn´t understand how it was related to him. "A past I didn´t live it´s coming to me"

"It doesn´t matter how many times you think about it, the result will be the same. We don´t have enough information to understand the whole picture, but I´m sure about one thing; that place holds sweet and sad memories, yet I can´t understand why".

"You are right; we still have a lot to learn. Now close your eyes."

"You idiot! You don´t need to say it. What kind of lady do you think I am?"

"I know, I was just joking?"

"Joking? Interesting. Your expression remains the same, but it seems that your emotions are awakening too. I´m happy to hear that, but please don´t make that kind of joke again".

"Understood"

He headed towards his room. The surroundings pitch black. When he entered his room he suddenly felt exhausted, even he had his limits.

"At least I saved everyone" he thought, the faces of his students coming to his mind, Edelgard´s face lasting a bit longer before he surrendered himself to the world of dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As most people should know Byleth not only bears the Crest of flames but it also has the blood of Seiros. Those two elements will be important for the story. Let´s leave it like that for now.


	7. Peaceful days

**5/30**

The dawn came after a few hours, his mind and body still exhausted, yet he had to attend the reunion with the archbishop. Byleth changed his clothes to the usual ones he used when he was teaching and he left his room. The world around him was still silent, most students still in their rooms. When he arrived to the audience room Rhea and Seteth were already waiting.

"I thank for your diligence, despite the evident signs of exhaustion on your face" said Rhea with a sympathetic smile on her face.

"We will start shortly" Seteth assured him "We only have to wait for…"

"Sorry for making you wait"

The strong voice came from a blonde woman with blue eyes, her skill tarnished by the sun. She was wearing a white armor and she was carrying a shining weapon.

"That weapon isn´t a conventional one" he thought

"You must be the new Professor, are you interested in this?" she said smiling while showing him the weapon she was carrying. "It´s name is Thunderbrand and it is one of the Heroes´ relics. Oh by the way, my name is Catherine"

"Nice to meet you. My name is Byleth"

"For the upcoming month your task will be to accompany Lady Catherine and the knights of Seiros to help suffocate the rebellion of Lord Lonato. You won´t face frontline combat, but we can´t assure that the population there reminds mild to our efforts"

"I have a question. What is the Tragedy of Duscur?"

As he said the words the atmosphere around him froze.

"The tragedy of Duscur is used to refer to the unforgivable assassination of the Kingdoms royals and nobles, who were brutally murdered during a diplomatic mission to Duscur. The King Lambert, the queen consort Patricia and other remarkable nobles were among the victims. There was only one survivor, whose name is Dimitri, one of the students here and leader of the Blue Lions" Rhea´s face seemingly saddened by the events she was explaining.

Byleth suddenly realized that the shallow sadness he could sense in Dimitri´s eyes was related without a doubt to that affaire.

"Who was the responsible?"

"Although there was an investigation, only a few perpetrators were arrested and executed accordingly. Christophe, son of Lord Lonato, was among the executed."

"Yes, by my hand" Catherine´s face was completely serious, here previous warmth nonexistent.

"It is only human to hold a grudge against the people who judged your own son, but Lord Lonato has committed a grave mistake. A battle will bring nothing but more death and that´s why the Church must act. To stop it" said Seteth.

"I understand"

"Prepare your students for the upcoming battle, you will have next month to make sure the students meet our expectations. The road to the north is harsh even in this period of the year. Warm clothes should be advisable".

"Leave it to me. Apart from my students can I be accompanied by students from the other houses?"

Seteth was surprised by the question, but Rhea smiled.

"Of course Professor, even if you are the main Professor of your house I see no problem to ask for help from the other houses if they agree to it".

"That will be enough for today, return to your duties" said Seteth

"Yes"

After leaving the audience room he headed to the training room, where he found the person who was searching.

Dimitri was already training with his lance; sweat on his face but with a confident gaze. When he noticed his presence he stopped and came near him.

"Good morning Professor. Do you want to join me? Even if you are the tutor of the Black Eagles I would like to use this opportunity to improve my abilities."

"Good morning Dimitri, I have no problem with that but first I wanted to talk with you".

"Of course Professor" his serene gaze analyzing his face.

"The archbishop has commanded me to assist the Church in the suffocation of Lord Lonato´s rebellion. He blames the church of the murdering of his son due to the tragedy of Duscur. Do you think he´s wrong?"

Dimitri´s face turned pale, noticing the intromission he had made, he quickly apologized.

"I´m sorry to ask your opinion about something so personal. I feel like there is something that doesn´t make sense about that explanation"

"There is no need to apologize Professor, I was only a child when the tragedy happened but I can assure you one thing" his gaze grew harsher "the true perpetrators of the tragedy haven´t been found. Justice won't be served until everyone pays for that vicious crime. I hold no grudges against Lord Lonato´s son and I can even understand his seek of vengeance against the Church but I cannot allow more unnecessary bloodshed related to this incident"

"That´s why I´m here. Would you join us in this matter?"

Dimitri was surprised

"I thank you for your invitation, but I cannot avoid but wondering how Edelgard is ok with my participation"

"I haven´t told my class yet. I have given them a free day after yesterday´s battle. Why would she be against this proposition?"

"It sounds like she hasn´t told you, right?" Dimitri´s eyes grew darker. "I am sure she will not be pleased with what I am about to tell you, but the Queen Consort Patricia is Edelgard´s mother."

Byleth was shocked by the revelation. He knew nothing about Edelgard´s past, but he hadn´t expected something like that.

"Are you related to her?"

"We are not bound by blood as I was born from the previous marriage of my father. I used to be friends with her, but everything is in the past now" Dimitri said, his gaze lost in the thoughts of an era that would never come back. Suddenly his eyes focused on the dagger he had around his belt.

"I haven´t seen you with such a weapon before. Forgive my curiosity but can you tell me who gave it to you?"

"I received it from Edelgard, as a present marking my first month leading the Black Eagles." Byleth answered, feeling suddenly uneasy by the question.

"Oh I see. I guess it is like that then. Forgive my intrusion professor. I will gladly train under your leading during this month. For now would you train with me?"

"It will be a pleasure" Byleth nodded

…..

The training with Dimitri took most of the morning. When it finished, Dimitri was completely exhausted, but he was smiling.

"Thank you for not holding back Professor. To be honest, I´m envious of Edelgard, having such a mentor is something that can change your life".

"I have no problems training with you, but it is my duty to assist first my students. As you will accompany me during this month I will treat you as one of my own".

Dimitri gave him a sincere smile.

"I cannot thank you enough for that I hope to…"

"Professor! Let me go too!" a voice shouted

A student came rushing to their place. It was Ashe, one of the classmates of Dimitri.

"Ashe, you shouldn´t…"

"Lord Lonato isn´t an evil person. I´m sure if I talk to him, he will desist on this fight. Please allow me to go with you. I beg you!"

It was the first time he had seen Ashe like that.

"Forgive my classmate Professor. Ashe was raised by Lord Lonato, even though he didn´t have a noble background. He is like a father to him"

Byleth felt a slight pain in his chest. Killing someone you didn´t know wasn´t particularly difficult but facing a person you loved on the opposite end of the battlefield…He imagined facing the same situation with his father and he couldn´t avoid but feeling compassion to the blue lion´s student.

"You don´t have to worry Ashe" he said while holding his arm. "I have no problem if you come with us, but you must be strong in the case that Lord Lonato doesn´t surrender"

"Don´t worry Professor, I won´t be a burden to you" Ashe promised.

"Then it´s settled. Dimitri, Ashe you will meet with the rest of the group tomorrow. "

"Thank you Professor!"

After leaving the blue lion´s students, Byleth walked aimlessly around the courtyard of the monastery, thinking about the information he has learned during the morning.

"Good morning Professor!"

In front of him was Edelgard, wearing her usual uniform, a gentle smile on her face.

"I was looking for you but you were nowhere to be seen."

"I had a meeting with the archbishop this morning and then I met Dimitri" feeling the urge to tell her everything he invited her to take a sit in a bank near them.

When he finished talking, Edelgard´s gaze was clouded.

"Forgive me, my teacher, but I never planned to hide something like that from you. It was just that I didn´t consider it something important and it wasn´t related to our daily tasks. If I knew I would have told you before Dimitri".

"There is no need to apologize; I was just surprised about your relation with Dimitri and I´m sorry about the loss of your mother"

"It is in the past now and Dimitri is just another student to me now. I don´t have time to long for a past already gone, it is the future what requires my focus"

He looked at her eyes.

"What kind of future do you wish for?"

Edelgard´s eyes maintained his gaze

"I´m not used to someone so honest like you my teacher, but I wish for a world without the burdens of nobility and the crests. I may be mad" she laughed

"You are not"

"Byleth…"

"A fairer society is nothing to feel ashamed about. I will help you to achieve your dreams if possible"

Edelgard´s eyes grew wide, a torrent of emotions trying to leave her gaze.

"I´m defenseless against you my teacher, but if you still feel the same when the time comes I will gladly take your hand"

"Of course Edelgard" he said, gently placing his hand on hers.

Edelgard faced turned red

"It was just a figure of speech I didn´t mean it literall…Is that a smile on your face?"

He touched his face with his free hand, feeling an unfamiliar tension around his lips.

"You are really smiling, you are human after all" she said while giving him a warmth smile. "I´m glad to be the first person to see it"

"Me too" he replied feeling still that strange sensation. "You were looking for me. Did you want to train?"

"Ah yes" she said while touching her hair her eyes contemplating the blue sky. "But it can wait, for now I would like to treasure this moment for a bit longer"

Looking at her gentle smile he realized he was looking at the genuine Edelgard, the one without the burdens of an empire to rule. Inside him he could sense Sothis, who was contemplating the scene with interest "Even the thickest ice can melt with enough warmth" she murmured.

….

He trained with Edelgard for three hours. He used swords, axes, lances and even a bow against her. Her resistance and strength were forces to reckon. Even him was feeling a bit tired after having two training sessions with the two leaders of a house.

"You did well Edelgard"

"Thank you Professor, but I must practice harder, I´m exhausted yet you are still holding your own, even though you trained with Dimitri before"

"You don´t need to compete with him. Your battle styles are completely different"

"Don´t worry Professor" she said while smiling "It is a way to keep my focus"

"Hey Teach! You two again? Edelgard stop kidnapping the Professor you are going to make him hate you"

"I don´t hate Edelgard"

"My teacher, don´t fall to his tricks, Claude is just teasing us" said an annoyed Edelgard. "It is only natural for us to share more time together than the rest of the students. I don´t see you complaining about the trainings with Professor Manuela"

"Sharing is caring Princess, besides if he has already trained with you and Dimitri it can lend some time to a poor soul like me" he said while teasingly smiling.

"How did you know?" Edelgard asked surprised

"I swear I didn´t use any tactics, I just asked Dimitri why he looked so tired and he told me everything" he looked at Byleth "Next time you can bring me or any of my group. Chilling from time to time it will make you feel good, don´t you think?"

"You are forcing yourself onto my Teacher"

"Don´t worry Edelgard. I will train with you Claude"

"Thanks Teach!"

"Then I will stay too, I will show you Claude, that no matter the circumstances I will prevail"

"I told you Teach, you should have chosen me, Dimitri and Edelgard are going to make you mad with their solemnity."

…

After the practice everyone was exhausted.

"I told you I will prevail"

"And I accept my surrender. It seems that I lack in resistance, and you Teach. Let me invite you for dinner"

"You have really taken a liking to the Professor"

"Of course, don´t worry Princess I will invite you to the wedding" he winked

"How can you be so carefree!" but Edelgard couldn´t hide a smile

"Let´s eat together" Byleth said

"And like this an everlasting peace was achieved"

"Please stop Claude"

They headed together towards the canteen. They took a seat, Edelgard sitting beside him and Claude in front of him. When they were about to start eating Dimitri came near them.

"Can I take a seat?"

"You don´t have to ask, we are friends and besides all of us have practiced today with Teach"

"Your resistance is impressive Professor, I´m looking forward to training with you again"

"Don´t abuse the confidence of my Teacher Dimitri"

"I can´t consider a morning worth of practice as an abuse"

"Enough of this talk, I´m here to eat with my friend not to hear fancy people talking" he said while winking at Byleth

"Let´s eat" Byleth nodded.

It was an unusual situation to see the leader of the three houses holding a meal together. "If they get along there is nothing to fear" he thought

"Are you sure? Your little Princess doesn't want to share you, it seems" Sothis teased him

"If it doesn´t affect me negatively or my students I don´t mind lending a hand and she is not mine"

"No need to feel so defensive about it, besides I think you are wrong, look around you"

Students of the three houses were gathering around him

"I heard that you practiced not with one but with the three lords today. I can´t wait to cross blades with you" grinned a confident Felix

"Me too Professor, I´m sure my muscles will get bigger and stronger if you train with me" said a smiling Raphael

"Professor! If I knew you were training everyone I wouldn´t have taken my day off." Complained a disappointed Caspar

"You are too nice for your own good Professor" sighted a tired Edelgard

"Are you training everyone? Haha Then practice with me. If I train with you I will learn to protect you better!" said Alois while patting his back.

"But you are not even a student!" complained Caspar

Byleth had to assured everyone that he will find some time to practice with then but his group practices will take preference over everything else.

When they were finished eating he departed from a smiling Claude and a less solemn and Dimitri and left the canteen alongside a more exhausted than usual Edelgard.

"Despite everything that has happened today was an eventful day"

"You did well Edelgard" he reassured her

"I´m glad to hear that, but starting tomorrow we have to make our best effort for the next task"

"Of course. I will keep training all of you as usual"

Edelgard tried to smile but she shivered a bit

"It´s getting a bit chilly"

"That´s true" a strong wind was coming from the north and the thermal sensation was lower than usual.

"You don´t like the cold?"

"I must admit that I lack resistance on that matter, the Adrestian Empire´s winters are mild compared to the rest of the continent and even if we are approaching the summer I can´t avoid feeling cold when the wind comes from the north"

"In that case take this" he said handing her his coat.

"My teacher, I must refuse I don´t want you to catch a cold"

"Don´t worry Edelgard I can handle this cold. Besides it would be a pity if you get ill"

"You are too nice for your own" she muttered, her face getting red.

"You can give it to me tomorrow before the class"

"I´m afraid that doing something like that will create a misunderstanding between Dorothea and Hubert"

"In that case I can come to your place to pick it up"

"That may be worse; Hubert´s room is next to mine. I will arrive earlier than usual and I will give it to you"

"Very well then, good night Edelgard"

"Good night my Teacher…and thank you"

Byleth returned to his room while Sothis was talking to him.

"I didn´t think that a heartless mercenary could be so nice"

"I´m glad to help and I have a heart…I think"

"I know, but I think that the bound with your students is changing you, for the better. I´m happy to see you experiencing new emotions even if your current variations are similar to a half dead fish"

"You are too mean"

"Am I? I´m tired of watching you training. Don´t wake up too late. We wouldn´t want to see the little Princess in troubles."

"Good night Sothis"

Byleth changed his clothes and started reading a book about magic. He was trying to learn white magic to help his students in case they were in problems but he wasn´t able to make much progress on his own.

"I will need someone to teach me, but who?" he wondered. Manuela was specialized in faith but she was too fond of alcohol and Hanneman was specialized in reason and asking a student would be considered strange. "I guess I can always ask her" although he didn´t feel comfortable to ask for help from the archbishop.

"I will protect all of you" he thought while entering the realm of dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you can have the assistance of a student why not the help of the house leader? Credits to the DLC for that idea. After all everyone wants to train with Byleth.


	8. A sea of doubts

**6/1 Gardland Moon**

Byleth woke up earlier than he usually did. He changed his clothes and headed to his classroom. He didn´t have to wait for too long until Edelgard arrived.

"Good morning Professor"

"Good morning Edelgard. I´m glad to see you well"

"Thank you for what you did yesterday, here take it, it´s yours after all"

Taking his coat he sensed something different.

"What´s the matter Professor?"

"Nothing in particular, it´s just that it smells like you"

"!"

Edelgard´s face was getting red.

"I´m sorry I didn´t mean it like that. It smells nice, I didn´t intend to criticize you" said Byleth completely misunderstanding the reaction.

Edelgard´s face grew redder

"Are you really ok? You may have a fever, let me check" he said while putting his hand over his forehead.

"My teacher…I´m okay. I must confess that I used your coat as a blanket since last night was especially chilly. I apologize if I have abused your trust"

"You don't have to worry. My father used to do the same to me. I don´t see any problem with that" the memories of the past came to him and he felt a comfortable warmth inside his body that didn´t last too long since Sothis was shouting inside his head.

"You are so dense I could build a castle on your face. You sure are the worst!"

"By the way, my teacher did you find something new about your mysterious crest?"

He explained to her what he had learnt from Hanneman.

"A crest that acts on its own as if it were another being. That sounds fascinating." She said lost in thoughts. Then she extended her hand and showed him her crest. "This is a minor crest of Seiros. As you can see I can control how it manifests, but it doesn´t mean that I can control it completely on the battlefield. Can you try to do the same?"

He extended his arm as she did but nothing happened. He felt a bit disappointed.

"There is no need to worry Professor. If your crest has manifested only recently it may mean that it needs time to bond with you. I´m not a specialist but I´m confident that Professor Hanneman will uncover the mystery of your crest soon"

"I hope so"

The rest of the class came one by one. The first to arrive was Dimitri, who was wearing knight armor, followed by Ashe.

"Good morning Professor, Edelgard. I´m looking forward our training today"

"Good morning Dimitri"

"Professor as I told you before I won´t let you down. I promise" said Ashe with a confident look on his eyes.

"I couldn´t expect less" reassured him Byleth.

The next to arrive was the high spirited Caspar, followed by Ferdinand.

"Morning Profe…oh! Dimitri, Ashe, what are you doing here?"

"We are going to collaborate with the Black Eagles' task this month. Please consider us as one of your classmates"

"As expected from the Professor. Developing bonds between the different nations is the duty of a noble. I agree with the Professor´s idea completely"

"I´m sure that Professor´s plan wasn´t related to the duties of nobility as you think it is Ferdinand" said an exasperated Edelgard.

"It doesn´t matter, I will use this opportunity to show my value as the son of the Prime minister of the empire. I´m looking forward to fighting against you"

"You sure don´t give up"

After everyone was there, Byleth cleared his throat and started explaining his students their current task.

"Our current mission is to help the Church´s forces in the suffocation of Lord Lonato´s rebellion. We will head north to the Holy Kingdom and we will count with the leading of Lady Catherine. I have asked Dimitri and Ashe for their help and they have accepted, so during this month treat them as members of your own class group. Leave aside every feeling of rivalry, we don´t have time to waste in quarrels. Understood?"

"Understood Professor"

"For this training I have planned to divide the class in two groups of five. I will choose the groups to make sure that you learn to cooperate"

"What will you do Professor?"

"I will be the third force in combat and I will fight against both teams. The last team standing wins. And the groups will be: Dimitri, Petra, Hubert, Bernadetta and Linhardt. Edelgard, Dorothea, Ashe, Ferdinand and Caspar.

Hubert´s amber eyes couldn´t hide his disagreement.

"I can understand your methods Professor, but I must oppose to it; there is no possibility that I could face Lady Edelgard as an enemy in the battlefield."

"Hubert, listen to the Professor´s command, it's an order" her violet eyes meeting his.

"Understood Lady Edelgard" disagreement still lingering in his voice.

They headed to the training hall. "I will give you 5 minutes to prepare your formations, use it wisely"

"Professor Byleth. I feel more comfortable fighting on a horse. May I use one for the upcoming battle?"

"Of course Dimitri"

"I will use one too then, I´m confident enough about my skills in battle" Ferdinand boasted.

"Riding a horse. As expected from a nobleman" Dorothea said although it didn´t sound like a compliment, but Ferdinand took it for one.

Both groups were taking their positions, while Byleth readied himself. After the five minutes mark passed he shouted "now!" and the battle began.

A magic attack coming from Dimitri´s group was directed to him. Byleth didn´t need to look to feel two ambers eyes focused on him.

While he was approaching both groups clashed. Dimitri and Ferdinand impacted but Dimitri´s sheer strength sent Ferdinand flying. Alongside him was Petra who was avoiding Ashe´s arrows. Taking advantage of Hubert´s focus on Byleth Edelgard and Casper charged at Bernadetta and Lindhart. In a panicked state Bernadetta started shooting arrows as if her life were in great danger which Edelgard stopped easily but Caspar couldn´t avoid them so well.

Realizing the attack to his rearguard Dimitri charged at Edelgard while Petra defeated Ashe, although she took an impact from a spell casted by Dorothea.

"I´m sorry Petra!"

"Don´t worry I´m not finished yet she said while charging at her"

"Not the face please!"

Byleth was getting closer to Hubert, who continued his endless casting of magic and dark magic against him. When he was in front of him he tried to cast a fire spell, but Byleth quickly knocked him down. "If you focus only on me you will pay for your lack of sight"

"Tsch" Hubert grumbled, already out of combat.

He searched his next opponent. Linhardt and Bernadetta were already defeated but Bernadetta was able to ko Caspar with her bare hands when he tried to hit her with his axe.

Dimitri and Edelgard were completely focused on each other, so he charged at Petra.

"I will show you my strength Professor" she said her eyes full of determination.

The combat was short but brutal. Petra´s slashes were unpolished but strong and she only admitted defeat when she got disarmed by him.

"I defended Brigit´s pride. I will keep fighting as today Professor" He nodded to her while heading to the place where Edelgard and Dimitri were still fighting.

"You won the mock battle but this victory will be mine".

"Don´t be so confident, the outcome is not decided until you have defeated me. Besides the Professor has come"

"A three way battle then" Dimitri said looking at him "Professor, Edelgard I will show you my real strength" he said charging at Edelgard and Byleth at the same time.

Byleth avoided the charge to the right while Edelgard tried to block it with her iron shield. It was impressive to see such a small person holding such strength. But Dimitri wasn´t defeated yet. He jumped from his horse when Edelgard´s axe tried to hit him and then he hit her with his blunted lance from her left side.

"Ugh..."

Looking for an opening Byleth took Ferdinand´s horse and charged at them. Dimitri realizing he was being charged he tried to outmaneuver him but in the last second Byleth jumped from the horse, his body impacting on Dimitri. They rolled on the ground. Dimitri was strong but having lost his lance due to the impact he wasn´t able to counterattack Byleth´s sword attacks.

"I accept my defeat Professor" he sighted

Noticing Edelgard behind him, he blocked her axe attack with his sword, but it broke.

"I won´t be easy on you even if you are my Teacher" she said smiling with confidence.

He jumped backwards to avoid another attack and then he rushed to take Ferdinand´s fallen shield. It was light weighed but sturdy enough to resist a few blows from Edelgard´s axe.

"Are you going to use a shield against me? Interesting"

They charged to each other. Byleth used his shield to stop Edelgard´s axe attack and he then threw all his weight onto her, trying to destabilize her. It didn´t work, since she changed her position to counter it, but that was what he was aiming for. In an instant Edelgard launched a counterattack, but Byleth avoided it in the last second, having lost her balance he jumped to her.

They rolled on the ground. Edelgard was trying to reach for her axe but Byleth immobilized her grabbing both her arms in the area of the wrist. Being on top of her he said "The battle is over. Good job Edelgard"

"I was closer than ever this time but it seems that experience is on your side my Teacher" Then realizing his proximity she blushed. "Can you release me now my Teacher, everyone is watching"

"Ah I´m sorry"

"Professor Byleth you are too aggressive but I wouldn´t mind facing you like that" said Dorothea in a teasing tone.

"Dorothea, that comment was highly inappropriate, but I agree on one thing. Professor Byleth you should restrain yourself of using your full force especially if it affects Lady Edelgard´s safety"

"Hubbie you are talking about restraining, but you released a magic storm on the Professor"

"All of you need to improve your cooperation. Dimitri, did you tell Hubert to focus only on me?"

"No Professor"

"You have to respect the commands of your general even if it´s not Edelgard. Now we will continue with some archery"

…..

After four hours of training everyone was exhausted.

"You all did well, we will continue tomorrow"

"I feel that under your guiding I will achieve new heights Professor" Dimitri said

"Don´t forget that he is not the Blue Lion´s Professor"

"I haven´t forgotten it Edelgard. Even if we fight as fellow classmates for now I haven´t forgotten that we are rivals. I won´t lose to you in the Battle of the eagle and the lion"

"I won´t surrender either" she said with a confident look on her eyes

"What are you going to do now Professor?"

"I will keep training"

"I see, good luck on your training I will fight harder tomorrow. I will take my leave for now" Dimitri said while leaving them alone.

Edelgard looked at him

"I would gladly train with you but I´m exhausted. Besides I promised to take bath with the girls and my hair is a mesh"

"It is ok as it is" he assured her

"If you say so" see you tomorrow my teacher she said while giving him a warm smile

Byleth left the practice room and headed towards the audience room. There she was, reading a book. When she noticed his presence Rhea smiled at him.

"Professor Byleth, I thank you for your visit. Do you need something from me?"

"I wanted to practice magic but I´m not sure it is appropriate to ask for it"

Rhea was seemingly pleased

"I have no problem to teach you; in fact I am pleased to help you. Why do you want to learn?"

"To protect my students"

"It warms my heart to see that you worry about their wellbeing. Come with me to my chambers. As a first lesson there is no need to use such open space"

Byleth was uncomfortable with going to the archbishop´s chambers but he had no other option.

"As you wish"

Walking alongside her he couldn´t stop having a feel of familiarity with her, but that couldn´t be possible.

"Do you feel at home now Professor Byleth?"

"Well I´m getting used to it I must say"

"I hope that you will end to like this place as your father did" she smiled

"Where is he? With the recent events he wasn´t able to talk with him but he overheard two soldiers talking about Sir Jeralt´s expedition to the Leicester Alliance.

"Giant wolves have been causing havoc in the territories of the Alliance. Your father is helping the Church on that matter, but don´t worry he will be here next month. We have arrived."

The archbishop´s room had a round shape and had scarce furniture around it. A bed was placed in the middle of the room and there was a carpet in front of it with the symbol of the crest of Seiros, which he had seen on Edelgard´s hand before. Rhea took a seat and invited Byleth to do the same.

"Magic is the energy that allows us to break the rules of this world" she explained "there is magic in every living being but only those who train can allow it to appear. To achieve this result there are two ways. The faith allows someone to connect himself with his ideals and is that believing that allows it to produce magic. The reason believes that the mind and not the will are capable enough to produce the same result. Some people consider the faith the way to white magic and reason the way to offensive or even dark magic but they are wrong. Both paths can ease someone´s pain or can be used to injure someone. The outcome depends on the person."

"Understood"

"Let´s start the practice then" she smiled "Take this flower"

The flower she handed to him was clearly dry.

"Try to sense it´s energy"

He touched the flower with his bare hand but he felt nothing.

"Focus on it, avoid any distractions"

Byleth concentrate himself on the flower he was holding and then he felt it, an inch of pain.

"I feel a bit of pain"

"That´s the flowers pain. It needs water and the lack of it is making it suffer. Now try to ease its suffering. Use your will to help and reach for it"

He closed his eyes and focused on the tiny being he was holding. Feeling a strange warmth on the tips of his fingers he opened his eyes again. The flower had recovered its bright colours and was fine.

"Good job Professor Byleth" Rhea smiled "Now try the same thing with this flower"

She handed him another dry flower similar to the precedent. But even trying his best efforts the flower remained the same.

Sensing the disappointment on his face Rhea comforted him "You don´t have to worry about this outcome Professor. This flower was already dead, but it gives you an important lesson. Magic can help us to achieve things that would be considered impossible, but returning someone from the death is something no one has been able to do" her face darkened.

"Did you miss someone?" Byleth asked

"My mother, I lost her long ago but the pain I feel has remained the same ever since"

"I´m sorry about that"

"You don´t have to worry, your mere presence helps me to lighten my day" Rhea´s smile was sweet, but her eyes looked like she was seeing someone through him.

He kept practicing until the sun set. By then he was able to cast a rudimentary healing magic and to light candles.

"Enough for today Professor. If you wish we can keep practicing once per week from now on"

"Thank you Rhea"

"There is no need to thank me. Thank your efforts. Keep practicing in your free time"

"I will"

….

**6/10**

More than a week has passed since the start of the month and the efforts of their students were paying efforts. The presence of two leaders in the same class caught the attention of most of the students who tried to catch a glimpse of Byleth´s training methods. Byleth had ordered private training sessions as he felt uncomfortable with too many eyes watching him and his students, but even like that was unavoidable to feel observed.

"Good job all of you, have a rest"

"Professor you are making the rest of the students envious. You are too popular" giggled Dorothea

"I don´t understand why. I prefer sleeping to training"

"That´s just you Linhardt" grinned Caspar "I can feel I´m getting stronger thanks to you!"

"Oh by the way Professor" continued Dorothea "Do you know that next week the monastery will hold a tournament of pairs? Everyone can take part, even the Professors and the knights. Doesn´t sound amazing? A battle with your chosen one, how romantic…" said Dorothea loosing herself in a fantasy

"That´s not the most important part Dorothea! The winner gets a bunch of gold and even a silver weapon of his choosing. I have to win it!"

"No one would join you since you are continuously starting fights"

"Ah give me a break Linhardt!" Caspar said while laughing "Ey Professor why don´t we join forces? We will win easily."

"You have a point there, the Professor has already quite a reputation and will be a tough nut to crack as a rival"

"You two are just boring, it's more important the connection you have with the person you fight with" said Dorothea while sighing. "You should choose someone before you are asked. There is no way someone like you won´t take part in the tournament"

Byleth started to think "If I were to participate I would take part with…"

"Edelgard" he shouted

"Yes Professor?" Edelgard approached him, taking off her arms´ armor.

"Would you like to be my pair?"

"W-What do you mean my T-Teacher?" her face acquiring dangerous level of redness.

"Dorothea told me about a tournament that is going to take place in a week. To participate you need to be with another person. Is that ok to you?"

"My Teacher, don´t scare me like that! I will gladly fight alongside you"

"Edie, you are so cute when you blush! May it be that…"

"I-I was just surprised by the Professor´s request and don´t say such embarrassing things." Her gaze focused on the ground.

"I´m sorry Caspar but you have already lost"

"Eh Why?"

"The Professor will be your enemy and you are all alone" pointed out Linhardt

"Then fight with me, we are friends right?"

"Don´t worry I will cheer you up"

"That´s cruel!"

"Now it´s my turn to search a nice partner. I planned to ask you, but I don´t mind leaving you to Edie"

"Stop insinuating things Dorothea" said a still blushed Edelgard

As everyone took its leave they were talking about the tournament. Everyone except Hubert, whose eyes followed him until he left showing a clear animosity.

"What´s your plan of action for the tournament my Teacher?"

"The key to victory is going to be the bond between the teams. We can try doing a pair of mock battles with other teams."

"I see, the main problem I see is that practicing with potential rivals would show them our strategies"

"You are right but I have someone in mind that might join us, for now let´s practice the two of us"

"It will be a pleasure Professor"

…..

**6/11**

She woke up before the dawn. Using the small fountain on her desk she washed her face, dissipating the tiredness from her body. Next to her fountain was the flower that her Teacher had given her. She smiled at the sight of it.

She changed to her training clothes and took extra care in grooming her hair. She wasn´t too fond of makeup but she was proud of her hairstyle. She opened the door and there was Hubert waiting for her. Edelgard sighed "Is it something urgent Hubert? I promised to meet the Professor in 30 minutes"

"That´s the matter I wanted to talk about Lady Edelgard. You shouldn´t trust him. We don´t know his real alliances and he has the confidence of the archbishop"

"As you said we don´t know yet. It is too early to make such bold statements. I know that you don´t like him, but we can´t make drastic decisions yet"

"I´m only worried about your wellbeing Lady Edelgard. You seen too interested in him, but a word to the wrong ear will bring doom to us all. His lack of expressions is also disturbing and he has a major crest of unknown origin"

"I thank you for that, but don´t act by your own unless being told. As you said he doesn´t show his own emotions, but that doesn´t mean he´s trying to hide something from us. In fact, he is too honest. The fact that his crest is still unknown doesn´t mean that it will stay like that forever. It is only a matter of time that Professor Hanneman discovers the truth and I´m sure that the Professor will reveal that information to us. Understood?"

"Yes Lady Edelgard"

"Are you going to participate in the tournament?"

Hubert chuckled

"No one has invited me yet, but I guess it´s only natural"

"I can understand why" Even if Hubert was completely loyal to her she couldn´t avoid but noticing the sinister aura emanating from him. "I guess it´s in part my fault, if you weren´t with me your future would be different"

"Different? Yes. Better? Absolutely no. I don´t regret serving you and I will eliminate anyone who stands in your path."

"I thank you for that but don´t resort to killing unless being told so. By the way take, this" She handed him a letter "Send it as soon as possible"

"Leave it to me Lady Edelgard"

After leaving Hubert she headed to the Professor´s room. He had told her to meet him before his room. When she arrived she knocked his door.

"Professor Byleth, it´s me, Edelgard"

A few seconds later her Professor´s face appeared in front of him, wearing his usual blank expression.

"Good morning Edelgard. I see you are already prepared. Let´s go to the training room. I have reserved it for today"

"Have you found someone willing to practice with us?"

"Yes"

"Is he or she a student?"

"No"

"You don´t abuse words to express yourself Professor" she smiled

"Don´t worry you will soon find out" showing her a half smile, although his eyes remained the same.

When they arrived to the training room a woman and a man were already waiting there, although it would be more correct to say that a woman was waiting since the man jumped to embrace Byleth the moment he entered the room.

"Morning Byleth! I´m happy to help Jeralt´s son. Let this Alois train and protect you!" he shouted while smiling

"Good morning Professor" said the woman, which had short hair and a serious look on her face.

"Oh I haven´t introduced you to Shamir. She is a mercenary like you, but she has been serving Rhea for the last five years."

"As a way to show my gratitude, but I´m not part of the church"

"Nice to meet you Shamir"

"And this must be Lady Edelgard"

"Good morning Knight Alois, I thank you and Lady Shamir for helping us"

"There is no need to use formalities to address me. That´s not a common practice between mercenaries, don´t you agree Professor Byleth?"

"I agree"

Edelgard looked at them and she thought they were quite similar. "It must be their mercenary background"

"Forgive me; I will address you by the name then"

"Well now that we have ended the formalities let´s begin the training" Alois smiled "The objective of the tournament is to defeat the rival team. Even if one of the members of the team is knocked down they can proceed to the next round if their partner defeats the rest. There is a time limit of 10 minutes per fight. In the case that the time runs out both teams are disqualified. Dull weapons must be used. Pretty simple rules I must say. We will start in a minute. Prepare yourselves and good luck. This Alois won´t be easy on you!"

"What´s the plan Professor?"

"You will use a shield and an axe and will act as the barrier against the enemy attacks. I will attack from the sides making use of my speed to take down the less armored enemies. In this case I will try to take down Shamir while you catch Alois´s attention"

"Understood Professor"

"Are you ready over there?"

"Yes!"

"Then let´s begin!" Alois shouted, as he did it the first arrows came to their place. She blocked them but Shamir´s loosing speed was impressive. Byleth started to run to her left to come closer to Shamir but Alois was blocking the path, allowing Shamir to change positions.

"Shamir was trying to aim to her arms and legs but the size of her shield allowed her to have a solid defense against her attacks. Alois was trying to smash Byleth with his axe, but he was nimble enough to avoid the reach of his attacks. He was also avoiding arrows. Edelgard realizing that Shamir was aiming at both of them was shocked by the speed of the mercenary. She looked at her Professor and when their eyes met she understood that the plan had changed.

She advanced towards Shamir. Sensing the imminent danger Shamir dropped down the bow and she took an iron lance in her hand. She was able to avoid her thrusts, but with her reach she was avoiding getting hit by Edelgard´s axe. Shamir was trying to move behind her so to avoid that she used her shield as a blunt weapon. Shamir lost her balance and Edelgard took advantage of the situation to strike her down, but she couldn´t avoid getting hit on the knee.

"You win this battle Princess, but I´ve hit you too" said Shamir

"You are strong" Edelgard said "I can´t barely move my leg. That move wasn´t just a movement of self defense, it was a calculated maneuver" she thought.

"You are fast and strong but I will be winning this fight! Eh? Agggh!"

Alois tried to finish Byleth with a hit full of brute force but he miscalculated losing his balance. Byleth exploited the opening hitting him on the back.

"You got me there. Professor hahaha!"

"The winners are Professor Byleth and Edelgard. But this hasn´t ended yet" Shamir assured them.

Her Professor came near him nodding at her.

"You did a good job Edelgard"

"I appreciate it, but I must admit that I was hit and I can barely move my leg" she tried to smile, but she couldn´t.

"Don´t worry Edelgard" He took her and gently placed her on the ground. He took her leg armor piece off and he examined the area of impact that was turning purple. He placed his hand on her knee and closed the eyes. She suddenly felt a warm feeling around the area her Professor was touching. "He is using magic" she thought.

When he ended the pain was gone and the color of her skin had returned to its usual self. He was massaging the area.

"Do you feel any better?" he asked

"Yes my teacher, I thank you. I didn´t know you could cast magic"

"I´m learning, to help all of you"

"May I know who is teaching you?"

"The archbishop, Manuela has been recently having a streak of heartbreaks and Professor Hanneman is most focused on offensive magic and I thought that asking a student would be inappropriate"

"Oh I see" She didn´t want her teacher to have a major exposure to the archbishop, but his explanation calmed her down a bit. "Maybe when Manuela gets better you can practice with her. The archbishop must be really busy"

"I know, but I´m glad that I was able to heal you"

His honesty stroked her harder than usual. She could sense he wasn´t hiding his true intentions, he really meant what he said.

"You are too honest my Teacher" she smiled to him.

"Byleth! I was hit too and you haven´t asked about me!" Alois shouted while grinning "Next round! 1 minute to prepare!"

They were like that for the rest of the day.

…

"You are really a tough nut to crack Byleth, as expected of Jeralt´s son"

"Not only you, but also your student. I guess that all the talks about you weren´t just rumors." Shamir pointed out.

"Both of you did well too"

"We can train with you when we aren´t on our duties. I won´t let you down. And win or I wll get angry!"

"Don´t you want to take part in the tournament?"

"I would like to, but we can´t let down our guard. As a knight of the Church of Seiros is my duty to protect the monastery while you are having fun"

"It is the same to me except for the holy church part"

"See you soon then, both of you" nodded Byleth

They took their leave and headed to the gardens. The day was already darkening but luckily it was warmer than the previous ones.

"What are you going to do now my Teacher?" Edelgard asked him

"I guess I will go to the library. I can´t neglect my studies when my knowledge is lacking"

"I admire you for not pretending to know everything" she smiled lightly to him "I can accompany you if you want" she knew that Hubert would probably disapprove, but she just wanted to rest a bit from her duty. "I don´t mean to regret my path but a few hours won´t bring an end to it" she thought.

"Of course, your company is always nice"

They entered the library that was almost empty, most people heading to the dining room. Byleth took a book about the hierarchy of the Church, while she took a book about military tactics.

They were in complete silence yet it wasn´t an uncomfortable one. But the peaceful mood didn´t last too long, when a voice that she had grown to hate interrupted her thoughts.

"Good evening Professor Byleth. I´m glad to see you here again. Good evening to you too Edelgard"

Tomas´ facial expression was mild, but she knew it was a mask. A mask that was hiding a monster, a monster she had no option but to endure.

"Good evening Tomas. We were just studying. If you don´t mind" her tone was composed but it was only a mask.

"I am sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to congratulate Professor Byleth for his hard work; he is gaining quite a renown in the monastery. Although I wouldn´t expect less from the son of the Blade breaker" he said while tapping his shoulder.

"How you dare to touch him, disgusting" she thought, her ire fighting to leave her body but she just smiled in return "He is a quite capable man in battle. You should avoid picking a fight with him"

"I wouldn´t dare to do so Lady Edelgard" he said, a wide smile on his face but his eyes weren´t smiling. "I won´t interrupt you two anymore. Don´t forget to blow out the candles when you leave"

"Don´t worry"

When Tomas disappeared from her sight she sighted "Even when I want to rest my duties keep seeking me" she thought

"What are you thinking about Edelgard?"

Byleth was looking at her, a finger marking the page he was reading.

"Nothing in particular Professor I think I´m just getting sleepy"

"In that case I can accompany you to the dormitories"

She knew that she should refuse and excuse herself but she didn´t want to have Thomas around her Professor.

"I gladly accept your offer" she smiled

They left together and headed to the dormitories.

"Are you hungry?"

"Not at all Professor. I don´t eat that much to be fair" The truth was that she got used to not eating while she was tortured at the cellars of the imperial palace. She only got the bare minimum to survive and sometimes she wasn´t able to eat, due to the scent of death and fear in the dungeons.

"Me neither. As a mercenary we had to distribute the food evenly and there wasn´t plenty to begin with"

"I would like to hear more about your mercenary life Professor"

"I have no problem to tell you when we have time"

"Then it´s a promise"

They arrived to the door of her dormitory

"We have arrived, thank you for accompanying me Professor"

"It was a pleasure, sleep well Edelgard, and see you tomorrow" Byleth left without looking back while Edelgard remained still until she lost sight of it. She entered her room, paperwork on her desk. Looking at it she sighted. "And with this Edelgard´s day end and the emperor´s day begins" she thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don´t know which paralogues I should use for the story. I think that I can use paralogues exclusive to other routes if I can give it sense within the context of CF. The easier ones should be the school life ones


	9. The calm before the storm

**5/21 Gardland Moon**

Byleth, opened his eyes. The day of the tournament had arrived. He changed his clothes and checked the armor he was going to wear. Looking satisfied at the state of it, he put it on him.

He waited in front of the Black Eagle´s class until she arrived. She was wearing a heavier armor than his. Its crimson color dazzled him.

"Good morning Edelgard, is that a new armor?"

"Yes, it is, newly forged and sent from the armories of Enbarr. I sent Hubert to get it, as it is adapted to my body and I thought it was a good opportunity to make use of it. What do you think of it?"

"It looks great"

"I´m glad to hear that. We should head to the canteen. Fighting without proper feeding would be ill-advised"

"I agree"

The canteen was more crowded than usual. Everyone was talking about the tournament which was going to take place.

"Hey Teach I heard you will be taking part in the tournament" said Claude with a smile on his face. Next to him was Hilda, a member of the golden deer house. "I will be taking part with Hilda, I´m sorry but I will be taking the victory today"

"I wonder what schemes you have prepared for the upcoming battles" Edelgard said with a firm voice.

"If I told you it wouldn´t be a scheme anymore Imperial Princess" said Claude while winking an eye.

"You shouldn´t underestimate the Professor strength. I´ve had the opportunity to see it more frequently and he is a force to reckon" Dimitri was standing next to them and behind him was his protector Dedue.

"I know how strong he is, but there is going to be quite an opposition. I heard that Lady Catherine is going to take part"

"With who?" asked Byleth

"I don´t know but I´m sure it will be another knight from the church. I will be taking my leave. Teach, take it easy on us" he winked

After taking a light breakfast they headed to the training room. The rivals were chosen by a draw and their first rivals were…

"Dimitri and Dedue" finished for him Edelgard. "Our first battle and is going to be a rough one, but I´m sure we will prevail"

"We won´t lose"

Edelgard nodded to his reply "Just the response I expected to hear"

The teams entered the arena. Dimitri was wearing knight armor and was riding a horse while Dedue was wearing a heavy armor matching his impressive size. Compared to him Edelgard looked like a small girl.

"Don´t dare to say it aloud. I bet she wouldn´t like it"

"Sothis, it´s been a while"

"I´ve been busy with sleeping and stuff. Your constant training with the Princess has grown me tired. Anyway good luck" she said yawning "make sure that you win or all your efforts will be wasted"

"We will win the tournament"

The sound of trumpets marked the beginning of the battle. Dimitri charged at Edelgard but in the last second he changed his course to him. "A faint" he thought "he is learning to hide his intentions in battle" He avoided the charge jumping to a side…

But Dedue was already on him. Despite wearing a heavy armor Dedue was moving surprisingly fast. His maze hit the floor but it was a close call. Dimitri was already preparing a new charge, but his body was hit by a flying axe that hit him in the face, knocking him down of the horse.

"His majesty!"

"Don't worry Dedue focus on the Professor. I will take care of Edelgard" blood dripping from his nose.

Dedue´s hit were strong as a mountain so Byleth tried to block the less possible amount of hits. The heavy armor made Byleth´s hits ineffective but there were weakspots on the junctions of his armor. Dedue´s hit were starting to slow down but it was taking time. Meanwhile Dimitri was full berserker on Edelgard, his lance giving a distance advantage over her.

Finally, Byleth was able to disarm Dedue but he reacted trying to punch his face, avoiding his hit he counterattack using all his strength to hit his head. Dedue was wearing a helmet but the impact on his helmet was strong enough to knock him down. When he turned to Dimitri he saw him striking Edelgard in the stomach with his lance, with a blow that cut her breath, but even then she counterattacked striking Dimitri on the chest with her axe, sending him flying.

"You are strong Dimitri, but I won´t give up on my path" she said a painful smile on her face.

"The winners of this round are Byleth and Edelgard!"

They received an ovation from the audience. He looked at her and nodded.

"Are you ok?" he asked her as he approached.

"I´m fine, nothing I can´t withstand. Our next combat will be in 30 minutes. I wonder who is going to be our next rival"

"No matter the rival we will overcome it together" he assured her. He touched the front of the plate covering her stomach and used some magic. "It´s not much, but it´s better than nothing"

"Thank you my Teacher, but don´t abuse your magic, we may need it for the final phases of the tournament"

The combats continued with unique combinations: Ferdinand and Dorothea, Raphael and Caspar, Ashe and Silvain and even Félix and Bernadetta, although by the looks of it seemed that she was forced to participate by the menacing aura of the blue lion's student.

"Next round! The first round teams will be Byleth and Edelgard versus… Claude and Hilda"

An uproar followed the announcement.

"Claude now, don´t lose your focus my Teacher, we don´t know which plan is preparing"

They entered the arena again. Claude was smiling at them a bow on his right hand. Hilda was wearing a heavy axe and was light armored.

"Hey Teach, take it easy on us. We are here just to have some fun"

"I don´t trust what do you intend for having fun"

"Come on Princess, everyone who hears you might think we are not friends"

"Begin!"

Claude and Hilda started to run, Claude slightly in front of Hilda. When they were at five meters from Byleth, Hilda lowered her axe and launched Claude with it.

"Impressive" he thought, when he saw Claude aiming at him , it was too late. The arrows impacted him on the chest and taking advantage of the attack Hilda hit him as well.

"My Teacher!"

Edelgard threw a small axe towards Claude, which he evaded, he ran towards her dropping the bow and unleashing a sword next to his belt.

Byleth was too busy stopping the blows from Hilda. She had a similar size to Edelgard and their strengths were comparable.

"You are making me work Professor, why don´t you have pity of a weak girl like me?"

"Your strength tells otherwise"

"Not the compliment I would like, but ok"

A few meters from him Claude was dancing around Edelgard, his sword was searching the junctions and was trying to exhaust Edelgard, but Edelgard´s movements were faster than Dedue´s and Claude was forced to block more attacks than he would like to.

Claude had taken advantage of the surprise effect to land hits on him, it may be useful to use his same way of thinking to counterattack. He threw his sword at Hilda and pushed her to the ground.

"How you dare Professor!"

Hilda charged at him, her axe at full swing. He waited her attack and avoided it in the last second, her axe impacting on a column and getting stuck. He kicked her again to the ground and taking ground on the axe he climbed to the cornice and when he was a few meters on Claude he jumped towards the Golden Deer leader.

It was a mere second of distraction, but it was the time that needed Edelgard to neutralize his foe. Claude crashed to the ground. When the dust dissipated he looked at them and grinned "I admit my defeat I didn´t expect being attack in the same fashion from you Teach"

"You are too harsh Professor" approached Hilda "How can you push a girl to the ground not once but twice? You should be a better gentleman"

"Your strength is something to reckon Edelgard, but I´m glad I was able to experience it firsthand"

"It doesn´t matter what schemes you prepare, I will destroy them one by one"

"That remains to be tested"

Round after round the number of participants reduced, until it was the time of the finals. Together Byleth and Edelgard overcame students and members of the church alike, making their way into the finals.

"The final battle has arrived Byleth and Edelgard versus Seteth and Catherine!" shouted Alois.

"Our rivals are going to be a tough nut to crack my Teacher, but I will show no hesitation"

"We won´t back down I promise you we will win" his eyes full of will. They looked at each other at nodded. If they have arrived to this place there was no turning back.

"Professor Byleth! I´m looking forward to fighting with you. Don´t restrain yourself or you will regret it" Catherine grinned.

"I am confident about my abilities in combat Professor. I will test now your abilities against me" Seteth said.

"Go brother! I believed in you!"

Seteth´s serious gaze sweetened a bit after hearing that.

"Begin!"

Both teams charged at each other. There was no time for second plans, only the strongest will prevail. Byleth and Catherine started a sword dance, while Edelgard faced Seteth. The previous combats had allowed her to get used to lance wielding combatants and was taking the initiative of the fight to avoid getting outranged by Seteth.

"You are fast" Catherine grinned "but can you stop this?" fast as the lightning she tried to hit him on his left, Byleth blocked it but wasn´t prepared for the punch he received to his face from the right.

"To win you have to give all you´ve got. Sword or fists it doesn´t matter!"

She tried to thrust him, but he parried the attack and used his left leg to hit her on the stomach.

"That´s what I mean!" she laughed.

…

Edelgard and Seteth were changing blows. The lance of the archbishop´s right hand was used to attack and to deflect Edelgard´s attack.

"Even though you are wearing a heavy armor you are fast Edelgard"

"I will thank you for your compliment after I have defeated you"

"A bold statement I must say. Maybe choosing the Professor wasn´t a bad decision after all. Show me the results of your Professor´s training"

"I will gladly show you the results of my efforts"

…

Both pairs of combatants were getting closer. A storm of blades and a hurricane of iron approaching to the center of the arena.

Edelgard noticed Byleth´s presence a few meters from her. He was completely focused on Catherine, who seemed really enjoying the development of the battle.

"You should stay focus"

A Silver lightning came close to her face, barely avoided by her reflexes.

"I apologize, allow me to retaliate"

…

"Your student fights well and you are making me sweat. This is why I chose to be a knight. Don´t you feel it? Our styles might be different, but a battle is a battle"

"I agree but I am a mercenary no more. Allow me to demonstrate"

As he hit her with his sword he charged his right hand with fire magic. The sword started to grow red releasing sparks.

"Using magic on your sword? Interesting. But a bit of fire won´t scare me"

"That wasn´t my purpose"

"?!"

Byleth´s blade was weakened by the use of magic fragmenting and releasing splinters on his rival. Taking advantage of the confusion he used the accumulated energy to punch Catherine in the stomach.

"Ugh!"

Catherine fell to the ground with a loud sound. The arena grew silent, interrupted only by Edelgard´s voice.

"I will prevail!"

The shout was followed by a loud sound. When Byleth turned to see Edelgard she was sweating and tired but victorious.

"And the winners are Byleth and Edelgard! I can´t wait to tell your father about this!"

The end of the battle was received by a wave of applauses and shouts. They looked at each other and Byleth could see in her eyes happiness and pride. Taking her hand he raised it, as a symbol of victory.

In a few seconds, they were surrounded by students acclaiming them. The more vociferous were the Black Eagle´s students, especially Caspar. The joy of their faces made him feel accomplished.

"You did well Byleth. I´m proud of you. You won without the assistance of your mysterious crest" said Sothis

"Crests are not what define a talent. As long as I have a sword in my hand I will keep fighting and training, like I´ve done all my life"

"For your students?"

"I think so"

"I´m glad to hear that, please continue celebrating with your children, they are calling you"

"Professor, Edelgard! You did it!" Caspar cried

"I told you there was no possible way to win in your case. Both of you are too strong I grew tired just by watching"

"Fighting back by back was so romantic I would like to sing an opera about a battle like that"

"Dorothea!" Edelgard interrupted her

"The Professor strength has been proven again, but I dare to say that Edelgard´s presence was the key to the present victory"

"Edelgard and the Professor are strong. They won´t be an easy prey"

"You really like hunting Petra" Dorothea sighed

"Why I had to fight? Felix is so scary he was going to kill me if I refused!"

"Calm down Bernie, you did quite well and I heard him say that he chose you because of the strength of your hands"

"I´m glad that you fought alongside me, Dorothea, I know we have our differences, but I thank you sincerely"

"I would have liked to fight with the Professor, but I guess that you can be bearable from time to time" she giggled

"Everyone did great, now let's celebrate in the class" said Byleth

….

The celebrations continued for a few hours. Her Teacher and she were the center of attention of the excited black eagles´ students. She was happy about their victory and watching the bonds that were blooming between her fellow classmates made her feel happy. "If it could be always like this" she lamented inside her mind.

When the celebrations ended every student said goodbye and headed to their respective dormitories. Hubert had returned earlier to continue with his tasks and she unsuccessfully tried to dissuade Dorothea from singing a song about the battles of the tournament, before she departed too, leaving her alone with her Teacher.

"My Teacher"

"Yes Edelgard?"

"Would you mind taking a walk with me until my dormitory?"

"I don´t mind"

They were talking while they were walking around the monastery.

"Today was really eventful"

"Indeed"

"It seems like yesterday the day our paths crossed, yet two months have already passed. Everyone is changing for the better, I can see it. The bonds between the students are getting stronger"

"Yours as well"

"You are right, even Hubert I dare to say, but keep it a secret" she giggled

"Are you enjoying your time here as well Edelgard?"

"If I have to choose an answer I would say yes, I´m enjoying it, but I know that these days will eventually end" her tone grew darker when she said it, but it was the sad truth. Her path was full of sacrifices and eventually her peaceful days at the monastery will end.

"Do you want to be free?"

Edelgard was surprised by Byleth´s question. "I would like to be free, but I´m bound to my duty"

Byleth remained silent, but she couldn´t decipher what he was thinking.

"It seems that we have finally arrived, thanks for scouting me my Teacher. If tomorrow were like today it would be a pleasant surprise"

"It will"

After wishing a good night to her Teacher she closed the door and sighted. She was happy, but behind the light she felt the shadow of her duty was waiting, and she knew she would always choose her duty first.

"Even if I cannot run away from my fate, is it wrong to wish a similar day for tomorrow? After all it´s my birthday. Will he remember?" She sighted again "I´m having too many foolish thoughts. I have to focus" she reassured herself as she started writing a letter to his uncle Arundel.

**6/22**

Edelgard opened her eyes when the sun started to shyly show it´s face between the clouds. She didn´t have that night the nightmares that usually tormented her. Looking through the window she saw a familiar back walking alongside a Pegasus. He was holding something but she couldn´t identify it from the distance. Before, she couldn´t start to wonder what was doing her teacher outside at dawn he mounted the animal and headed to the horizon. She was intrigued by it "I will ask him later if I have the opportunity" she thought.

She looked at the letter that she had written the day before. It was a report about the facilities of the monastery and the possible secret passages inside it. She was forced to cooperate with them and she couldn´t give false information since Tomas was already there. The only comfort she could find was the retaliation that she was preparing to all of them when she freed herself from their chains. "For the time being I must cast aside my feelings, but I remember brothers and sisters".

She opened the door and there was Hubert awaiting his orders of the day. However, today his expression was a gentler one. "I wish you a day full of fortune, Lady Edelgard"

"Thank you Hubert, I appreciate it" she smiled "I beg you to send this as soon as possible"

"It will be done, Lady Edelgard" he bowed

The clouds were retreating and it was starting to blow a gentle breeze, so she thought it would be a good idea to walk through the gardens. There she found Dorothea, who was humming a song, while contemplating a particularly big rosebush.

"Good morning Edie" she smiled at the sight of her. "Aren´t they beautiful? A beauty that will eventually fade, it makes me feel happy and sad at the same time"

"Even if they fade away their scent will outlast them. In a sense they won´t completely die until we forget how they smelt"

"Oh Edie! You have got up like a poet. If most men could have a deeper way of looking the reality" she sighed.

Dorothea was gaining quite a reputation as a heart breaker, but she could say nothing about it since she was inexperienced on these matters.

"By the way" continued Dorothea "Did you know that the Professor has taken a liking to gardening? He is planting his own seeds and some of them are starting to grow"

"Really? You can´t just judge a book by its cover it seems"

"To be honest, I thought at the beginning that he would be a harsher man, but I find it to be kind, even if sometimes it´s difficult to know what he´s thinking"

"I guess you are right. He can be seen as a distant person, but he is kind"

"If I can say the truth it reminds me of you" she smiled at her "Both of you have the aura of a leader and can join persons of different backgrounds together. I must thank you for accepting me, even if I´m a commoner"

"Don´t think less of you just for being born a commoner. We don´t choose our fathers or the place where we are born. I consider you an equal"

"If most nobles were like you I wouldn´t hate them" Dorothea giggled. "What are you planning to do today?"

"Nothing in particular, just walking and reading"

"Then, could you come to the Black Eagle´s classroom at night?"

"I wouldn´t mind"

"It is a promise then" Dorothea smiled "See you later Edie!"

The day passed as usual, but her Professor wasn´t the only one who was acting strange. She caught a glimpse of Bernadetta, before she hid in the kitchens and Petra was using flowers to make a purple pigment. When she asked her what she was doing she answered "It´s a custom from Brigid I use it to make my corporal markings"

When the sun started to set she headed to her classroom. It was completely dark. She thought she had mistaken the time when a chorus of voices shouted.

"Happy Birthday Edelgard!"

All her fellow students were there, even Hubert, although his face was tense, not use to this kind expressiveness.

"Edie, you should have told us that it was your birthday. I´m glad that I asked Ferdie and Hubie about it."

"I thank you sincerely for your consideration" she smiled

"You don´t have to worry Edelgard. As the future prime minister it´s only my duty to remember the emperor´s…"

"Ferdie, she is thanking us all, not only you"

"I agree with Dorothea on this matter. If you have to make a reference to your nobility for remembering a date then you have nothing to boast about"

"Calm down you two" Dorothea sighed. "Sit with us and eat. Bernie has made the sweets"

"If you don´t like them please don´t kill me" Bernadetta begged

"I wouldn´t do such a thing so calm down Bernadetta" she reassured her

She was pleased with the taste of the sweets. Seeing Edelgard´s reaction Bernadetta calmed down and was even able to chatter normally with the rest of the students.

"It is time for the presents!" Dorothea announced.

"You didn´t need to do that" she said, feeling a bit embarrassed but she accepted the presents she received.

Ferdinand gave her an elegant black feather, while Caspar gave him a pair of training gloves. Linhardt gifted her a book about the history of the foundations of the empire while Hubert gave her a new pair of white gloves. Petra painted on her hand a marking that would give her favorable hunts when the moon was full like tonight as she assured her and finally Dorothea sang for her a special version of happy birthday just for her in her songstress voice. The faces of everyone would be a memory she would keep for the rest of her life.

…

Receiving the final congratulations from her fellow students she headed towards her room. Her birthday was better than what she would have expected, but she couldn´t avoid but feeling a bit of disappointment for the lack of her Teacher. "I wonder where he is" she thought

"Edelgard, over here"

As if he had read her mind. Byleth was standing a few meters above her. He was riding the Pegasus she saw in the morning.

"My Teacher, what are you doing?"

"Happy birthday Edelgard. If you don´t mind would you like to come with me? I have something to show you."

"He didn´t forget after all" she thought "Thank you for remembering it. I accept your invitation but where are we going?"

"If I told you it wouldn´t be a surprise" he simply told her.

Sitting behind him her Teacher prepared the Pegasus to fly again

"Hold onto me. I don´t want you to fall"

Embracing his back, they departed into the night. The air around them was cool but that couldn´t hinder the beauty of the sky above her. Enjoying the feeling of freedom she didn´t realize when the Pegasus started to fly lower, eventually landing.

"We have arrived" Byleth announced

Helping her to get off the pegasus she looked the area around her. She was in a field of flowers and when these flowers received the Moon´s embrace they started to glow. The sight of hundreds of flowers glowing at the same time left her breathless.

"What do you think Edelgard?"

"It´s beautiful. How did you know of such a place?"

"I´ve been learning about the plants of Fódlan and this particular specie caught my attention. They remain close during the day and only bloom when there is full moon. I heard that there was a place near the monastery with such species of flowers and I spent the day searching for them"

"You didn´t need to do such a thing my Teacher"

"I did it with pleasure Edelgard. I wanted to make you feel free of the constraints of your life, even if it was only for a day. Because for me you are not an imperial princess but my student and between my students you are the one who needs the most to cherish this short period of time"

"My Teacher…"

She was completely moved by his words, her inner self a raging storm of emotions.

"When you master your flying skills you are free to come to this place" his expression hadn´t changed a bit, but there was kindness in his tone. "And take this too" he handed her an armored bear stuffy "I don´t know if you will like it though"

"My Teacher, I will cherish these memories forever" and when she smiled the real Edelgard smiled, the emperor remaining in the shadows for the time being.

….

When she returned to her room she kindly placed the armored bear beside her, her mind filled with the emotions of the day.


	10. To the bitter end

**6/24 Garland Moon**

"We will depart shortly" announced Byleth "Everyone, pick a horse"

His students had already changed to their travel clothes. The sky ahead them was cloudless, but the wind coming from the north wasn´t so gentle. Catherine had already started the march as the leader of the vanguard. Byleth and his students were assigned to the rearguard and they were waiting their turn to leave the monastery.

"The roads to the north are harsh, even in this season" told him Dimitri, who was riding an especially sturdy horse. "However, Faerghus doesn't lack its own beauty and Fhirdiad has nothing to envy to Enbarr. If an opportunity arises I will gladly show it to you"

"I wouldn´t mind" Byleth nodded at him. He looked pleased by Byleth´s answer.

"For the time being, let´s focus on our task" his eyes recovering his solemn aura.

As they left, Alois came to him and handed him a pair of concoctions. "Good luck Byleth, I hope you don´t have to use them, but just in case"

"Thank you Alois"

Alois kept waving his hand until he lost sight of him.

The roads around the monastery were in good condition and they advanced smoothly. His students were pleasantly chattering between them. Byleth remembered his days of a mercenary, he barely talked except with his father, but he didn´t mind the chattering of his comrades. It was a way to release the tension of the upcoming battles and it was useful to avoid being idle for too long.

"I can´t wait to fight again!"

"Caspar, this travel is going to take a while, could you please remain silent for a while?"

"All you want to do is sleep Linhardt! You are going to fall from your horse if you do so"

"I don´t like the wind from the north"

"I think the same Petra. Brigid is completely different right? How about we talk about Brigid to forget this chilling wind?"

"Of course Dorothea" Petra genuinely smiled.

The ones who talked the less were Edelgard, Dimitri and Hubert, but even they were a bit more relaxed than usual.

"That´s thanks to you I guess. I enjoy seeing them more opened between themselves for the time being" Sothis said

"I know, let them being simple students for now"

"If you said it like that you sound like an old man, but you are not that older than them. Shouldn´t you relax a bit too?"

"You sound like Claude"

"The easy going child? You might be right."

"Professor, what are you thinking?"

His conversation with Sothis was interrupted by Edelgard´s voice.

"Nothing really, I was just remembering my mercenary days. I didn´t join the chattering, but I didn´t mind them"

"Feeling nostalgic then." She smiled to him "Talking about it you promised me to tell me some stories of your past. Would you mind telling some of them now?"

"I have no problem to tell you"

He told her about the clan wars of Sreng, the assaults from Almyrian pirates and the giant mammoths from the frigid lands of Albinea. When he realized, everyone was silent listening to him.

"Is there a place where you haven´t been to?" Hubert chuckled.

"That sounds amazing I want to see the world like you have done Professor!"

"Now you are going to be an explorer Caspar? We are doomed then" Linhardt sighed

"Did you find a forbidden love during your expeditions Professor? Someone to share your nights with?"

"Dorothea that topic is highly inappropriate" said a slightly embarrassed Edelgard

"I wasn´t there for love, just for money"

"So boring" Dorothea sighed, "But I will give it a pass, since you are so handsome" Dorothea teased him.

Watching their quarrels Byleth found himself at peace.

…..

**6/27**

As the days passed, the hills gave way to shady forests. An ominous atmosphere was starting to settle and the students started to remain more silent than usual. The sun was starting to set when Catherine came riding from the vanguard.

"We are entering Lord Lonato´s domains. Stay alert. We will face them at dawn"

"Understood. I will stay alert"

Heading again to the vanguard Byleth regrouped his students.

"We are entering Lord Lonato´s territory. Remain alert"

Everyone nodded, afraid to disturb the forest silence. Ashe was slightly trembling, but Dimitri´s reassuring eyes made him stop.

They arrived to an open area in the forest with a crag to the left. "Prepare the perimeter; we will make the camp here. I will have the night guard."

As they were preparing the camp, Byleth climbed to the crag. In the horizon small dots of light started to appear. Byleth was opposed to the use of bonfires in hostile territory, since they were easy to spot at night, but looking at the surroundings he thought it didn´t matter.

"Lord Lonato already knows we are here. Fewer bonfires wouldn´t change his way of action" he thought

Everyone was busy with the preparations of the camp. He searched for Ashe, who was making arrows.

"How are you doing Ashe?"

"I´m fine Professor…I would like to say, but I´m nervous" Ashe admitted "This place is full of fond memories, yet here I am, preparing arrows to fight my benefactor"

"Can you tell me more about Lord Lonato, Ashe?"

"Lonato is a pious man, he completely believes in the Goddess. He is beloved by his knights and small folk alike. He even brought me out of the misery and brought me up as his own son. He taught me how to read and write and paid to send me to the monastery. A man with such a good heart can´t be acting like this just out of grief"

"Do you think he has learned something that has changed his view of the church?"

"I´m sure about that, he won´t be acting like this without new evidence. That´s why I must talk to him"

Byleth placed his hand over Ashe´s shoulder.

"I will let you talk with him, but if he doesn´t change his heart you must prepare yourself for the worst"

"I know Professor, I´ve feared the day that is about to come since the beginning of the month. But I won´t betray the confidence that you have placed on me Professor. Besides, Dimitri won´t treat me the same if I did" he said, a sad smile on his face.

He patted his shoulder and let him be.

"This world is full of unnecessary deaths. It makes me sad" Sothis muttered

"It´s been like this since I know. It´s just the way this world has been built"

"I would like it to change, but for now is just wishful thinking. Take care of that little student of yours, whatever it happens tomorrow"

"I will, I´ll protect them all"

"I´m glad to hear that" Sothis smiled "But don´t die doing something heroic, remember we are on the same boat"

"Don´t worry, I haven´t forgotten"

…

After a light dinner, everyone headed to their tents, only Byleth remaining on the top of the crag. He was using a whetstone on his sword; the sound of it gave him a strange comfortable feeling. The world around him was completely silent, only the leaves murmuring between them. He remained like that for hours, mentally reviewing tomorrow´s battle plan. He had already lost count of the time that had already passed when a familiar voice interrupted his thoughts.

"You are still here my Teacher. May I accompany you?"

He looked at her; Edelgard was wearing fur clothes that only revealed her face. Covered in fur she looked especially tiny.

"You should be resting, Edelgard, tomorrow is going to be a hard day"

"I know, but I don´t feel tired at all. Am I disturbing you?"

"I didn´t mean it like that, your presence has never been a burden to me. You are free to stay if you want to"

"Thank you my Teacher" Edelgard said while sitting alongside him. "How do you feel about the upcoming battle?" her amethyst eyes searching his.

Looking at her he answered "It´s a meaningless battle, yet I don´t think that Lord Lonato is acting like this out of vengeance. If it were like that he would have rebelled years ago. He has discovered something"

"I think so, I can´t avoid wondering if the Church is fighting the rebellion to keep something hidden. Lord Lonato´s forces can´t compare to the might of the Church, yet he is fighting against them for something he knows. I can understand that feeling"

The way Edelgard talked to him, made him wonder if she was keeping something from him too.

"Secrecy is the way the nobles fight so it isn´t strange to be the same in the case of the Church"

"As a mercenary I can see that you have experienced the true face of the nobility. Quarrels without end only to improve a bit their own position, while crushing to the oblivion commoners and defeated alike. The Church is no different to them in my opinion."

Her bold words moved him a bit.

"You said you will change this system for the better. I wish your dreams come true" he said while gently tapping her head.

"My Teacher…" said Edelgard, gratitude filling her eyes "If most people were like you. Maybe you can…" she stopped taking a deep breath. "There is no time to such wishes, for now let´s focus on the task ahead"

They remained silent like that, lost in their own thoughts, until the dawn came.

…..

Everyone was changing their clothes to their combat armors. He could hear the movement around the near camps. Everyone was preparing to march. A messenger from Lady Catherine came to inform them that they were required to Lady Catherine´s presence at the top of a hill 500 meters to their right. Dispatching him, he gathered his students.

"We are going to a hill 500 meters to our right; remain together as we will be leaving the cover of the forest. The fog is beginning to form, use torches to avoid losing sight."

They left the cover of the forest in complete silence. Dimitri to his left and Edelgard to his right, everyone followed behind them. The silence was total and unnatural.

"The fog is too thick for this time of the year" murmured Dimitri beside him, his eyes alert and checking his surroundings.

"It´s getting colder too" murmured Edelgard

Fortunately, they arrived to Lady Catherine´s camp without too much trouble. Lady Catherine received them with a serious gaze. "Good morning Professor, the offensive against Lord Lonato´s forces has already started, but with such a poor visibility we cannot neglect our vigilance."

"I agree"

Catherine sighted. "The old man is stubborn as a mule. I didn´t want it to end like this but…"

"Lady Catherine!" A soldier entered the tent where they were talking. Lonato´s forces have entered the perimeter. They are within reach.

"That´s impossible! The fog… Professor, prepare your students for battle, we can´t stay here idle!"

"Understood"

He gathered his students. "The enemy has entered the perimeter. Stay close and follow me"

"Yes Professor"

They formed a spear formation and entered the mist. The fog was so dense they could see almost nothing.

"All of you drop the torches" he ordered "If we can´t see them don´t let them seeing us"

Everything was in complete silence, but he could hear fainted voices within the mist, and the smell…

"Blood" completed Edelgard for him. There is a battle ahead us.

And then the first of them appeared.

A middle aged man was running towards them wearing a rusted sword. Byleth blocked the attack easily and pierced his attacker´s chest. When life left him he observed the corpse appearance.

"It´s not a soldier, but a villager" Dimitri´s voice was shocked.

"They fight and die for their Lord. It´s a tragedy, but we must endure it. If we doubt we can end up dying"

"Edelgard is right; no matter their reasons they are trying to kill us. We must defend ourselves"

"I know Professor, but it doesn´t make it easier for me"

A group of arrows interrupted then, they were shooting close to them. Edelgard shielded him, while Dimitri avoided the arrows directed to him.

He prepared a fire magic attack "Edelgard, Dimitri take advantage of my spell to neutralize the archers"

He released his spell into the mist, cutting like a knife through butter the fog disappeared for an instant in the trajectory of the fireball, allowing Dimitri and Edelgard getting rid of the archers.

Staying close, they slowly advanced through the fog. To his right he could hear screams and glimpsed a golden glow. "Catherine is using Thunderbrand" he thought.

"This fog is unnatural. It´s the product of sorcery. I can feel it in the air" pointed out Hubert.

"That means that if we kill the mage that is producing it we will be able to end its spell" Edelgard said

As she was saying it he sensed a slight change in the air. He quickly pushed Edelgard to a side to avoid the upcoming impact.

"So there you are" shouted Dimitri while running towards the enemy mage while being covered by Hubert´s spell.

"Thank you my Teacher"

"No problem" he said lending her his hand to get up.

"Lord Lonato, I´m sorry I couldn´t do more" he could hear the dying mage last words.

With his last breath the fog started to disarray and with it the magnitude of the tragedy appeared in front of them. The corpses of the attackers were spattered around them, most of them ill-equipped and only a handful of them could be considered real soldiers.

"So many families have lost their loved ones here. How many times is it going to repeat this tragedy just to fulfill the wishes of a few" lamented Dorothea.

"Using commoners as meat shields. I´m embarrassed of belonging to the same group of him" said a saddened Ferdinand.

"I knew some of them, they weren´t bad people and now I have their blood on my hands" grieved Ashe, tears starting to form in his eyes.

"Ashe…Just a bit more and you can mourn as long as you want to" comforted him Dimitri.

"Dimitri is right, we have to continue" said Byleth, although he felt his inside aching.

"There he is" announced Edelgard

Lord Lonato was heavy armored except for his head. He was guarded by a small group of knights, but he didn´t notice them. He only had eyes for Catherine.

"You have come here to finish what you started. Am I wrong Cassandra?"

"You are a fool Lonato. So much suffering and death for what?" said a saddened Catherine.

"Enough of your words! You are a servant of that monster! The death of Christophe won´t be in vain if I kill you know!"

"Lonato, please wait!"

Ashe rushed in front of him.

Lonato was in evident shock.

"Ashe, why are you here?" he said, his face unable to hide the sadness he was feeling.

"Surrender Lonato, I beg you!" tears starting to leave his eyes "There must be another way"

"Join me then Ashe, Rhea deserves to be punished for the unforgivable sins she has committed"

"Even if that´s true, using villagers is not right Lonato. It doesn´t matter which side I choose I will end up killing someone I love!"

"Enough! If that is how you feel there is no use of talking! Forgive me…Ashe"

Fast as the lightning a javelin flew and pierced Ashe´s chest.

"Lonato…"

Ashe fell to the ground while a solitary tear left Lord Lonato´s eyes.

"I can´t let it end like this!" he thought

Returning to the past, he rushed to Ashe´s position and intercepted the flying javelin with his sword.

"Who are you? Are you another servant of that filthy apostate?"

"I´m a Professor and I serve no one but my students"

"Enough of this nonsense! Charge!"

Lonato and their men charged at them, but he wasn´t alone. The rest of his students charged with him, spells and arrows flying over his head. One of the spells impacted on Lonato´s horse, making it trip. The rest of the enemies were quickly dispatched, but they died with honor.

Byleth approached the fallen Lord. He had broken his legs due to the weight of his horse.

"What are you waiting for? Put me out of my misery!"

Byleth raised his sword but a hand interrupted him.

"Your Highness…"

"I´m sorry for all of this Lonato, but you have chosen this path"

"I regret nothing your Highness. This way I can rest in peace knowing I did what I could."

Ashe approached them.

"Ashe you shouldn´t be here" Dimitri said, sadness lingering in his voice.

"I promised you I wouldn´t cry yet I did, allow me to stay in compensation"

"Ashe…" Lonato said coughing blood. "I´m sorry for leaving you in this state. I hope you will one day forgive me"

"Don´t worry Lonato, I will help the villagers as you taught me to do"

"Thank you"

Dimitri pierced Lonato´s chest with his lance and that marked the end of the rebellion.

…..

While Dimitri was comforting Ashe, Byleth checked the rest of the students. They were all alive, but they were depressed.

"This wasn´t a battle, it was a slaughter. And for nothing!" shouted an angry Caspar.

"I won´t forgive such behaviors. Unforgivable!" said Ferdinand in an angry tone.

Byleth noticed that Edelgard was bit apart from the rest of the students and he approached her.

"Professor, as you can see everyone is having problems to handle their feelings after what happened"

"This is the reality of the world we live in"

"You think the same then. Trying to hide the reality would be a foolish act, but doesn´t make it sweeter. The villagers that fought alongside Lord Lonato fought for his beliefs of justice. That's the reason why I think calling them just victims would be disrespectful to them. They chose to side with him until the bitter end. In this world, there isn't a unique justice or righteousness. It depends on the values we cling onto. I would follow my own values even if it means facing the wrath of a divine being."

"The righteousness of one's ideals aren´t based on the authority that creates them, but the results that bring to the world. If you leave the world better than it is I see no reason to oppose you"

Edelgard was completely shocked by his words.

"You really mean what you say… I think I would act like Lonato if I were the emperor. There is no other way to change a world that ignores the suffering of humanity. But I can promise you my Teacher that if the time comes I won´t make unnecessary sacrifices"

Byleth tapped her shoulder.

"You are strong Edelgard, but don´t let your force of will consume you if that time comes"

"My Teacher I´m afraid that…"

"I´m sorry to interrupt, but it looks like the situation is worse than I expected" said Catherine approaching them. "I have found this between Lord Lonato´s possessions" she said handing him a document. He read it and then gave it to Edelgard.

"An assassination plan against the archbishop?" said Edelgard

"Exactly, we don´t know yet the reach of this plan, but we have to be careful about it. We will depart shortly, after I leave part of my troops to check the situation in the nearby villages. I don´t want to waste more lives with another uprising"

"Understood"

After Catherine departed Edelgard looked at him.

"My Teacher, I have my doubts about the document we have just seen. Why would someone write an assassination plan in a situation which would risk its exposure?"

"It really sounds strange" he admitted.

"We will think about it later" she said as Hubert approached them "And thank you" she smiled "I´m glad to have heard your way of thinking in such a serious matter. I will remember it".

…

**6/30**

The return to the monastery was slower than expected since they were exhausted and the motivation of most of his students was at its lowest. His main concern was Ashe, but Dimitri was taking care of him. As they approached the monastery he could see the relief on some of his student´s faces.

"It´s over…for now" he thought

He directed to his students. "You all did well. I´m proud of all of you. Rest for the rest of the day and see you tomorrow"

"Yes Professor"

He approached Dimitri and Ashe.

"Dimitri, you did great and Ashe you did well too. I hope to see your smile soon".

"Thank you for your kind words Professor. I will head to my dormitory for now" said Ashe, the ghost of a smile on his face.

"Thank you for your guiding Professor. It´s a pity we had to experience such a tragedy, but it has helped me to grow"

"Don´t push yourself too hard. I´m looking forward to training with you again"

"Thank you" Dimitri smiled, "I will take my leave now"

"Professor" Catherine approached him. "Come with me to Lady Rhea´s place. We need to report this matter to her. Bring Edelgard with you too, she read that letter too, after all".

"Edelgard, with me"

"Understood Professor"

They arrived to the audience room, where Rhea and Seteth were already waiting.

"Welcome again Professor" Rhea smiled. "Lady Catherine please tell us about the development of the events".

"Lady Rhea, the rebellion has been suffocated. A part of our forces has remained there to avoid more uprisings, although the risk is small. Lonato is no more."

"Villagers took place in the battle. We were forced to take them down as well" added Byleth.

"It saddens my heart to hear that, but no matter the reason raising weapons against the church is opposing the Goddess herself. May they rest in peace now"

He could sense Edelgard´s tension.

"We also discovered this" Catherine said while handing her the document.

"An assassination plan against Lady Rhea" Seteth said. "Even if the rebellion has been repelled this matter is not over yet. I propose to turn the investigation of this matter into the assignment for the coming month"

"I agree with you Seteth. Next month is very important to us since it marks the arrival of the Goddess to this land. We cannot afford to call off the celebration, no matter the cost. Besides, if we have the protection of Lady Catherine and the Professor we have nothing to fear" she said smiling at him.

"Understood"

"Then the matter is settled" said Seteth, "You will patrol the monastery alongside the members of the Church. There is no need to say that you must keep training your students as you have been doing until now".

"Leave it to me"

"Then this matter is settled. You are free to rest now"

After leaving the audience room, Byleth walked alongside Edelgard through the aisles of the monastery.

"Our next task is to patrol the monastery then. However, I highly doubt that the archbishop is the real objective"

"You mean that the assassination plan is a distraction"

"Exactly. We should investigate possible elements of interest that could be the real objective of the plotters. Hubert shares the same opinion, but it would be ill advised to share our doubts with everyone. We can´t know if there are moles within the monastery"

"You are right, we will start from tomorrow. Rest Edelgard"

"Thank you, see you tomorrow then" she smiled to him.

Byleth returned to his room and sit on his bed. He was worried about the wellbeing of his students but he knew that handling hardships was part of their education.

"You worry too much about them, they will overcome it"

"I know, but I can´t avoid feeling bad about them"

"It´s called empathy, and it makes me happy to know that you have it. Tomorrow will be another day"

"You are right; there is no use to think about it now. I need to talk with my dad too" It had been a while since the last time he talked to him and knowing he was going to meet him again soon made him feel a comfortable warmth inside him. With that feeling he surrendered himself to the world of dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter hit me harder than expected. I planned to name it "Blood in the mist" but after writing it I think that the current title it´s more adequate. I wrote it while hearing "Thorn in you" from FE if/Fates. Credits to it for contributing to the mood to write the chapter.


	11. Family bonds

**7/1 Blue sea moon**

The world was still in darkness when Byleth left his room. He headed to the entrance of the monastery and waited the arrival of his father. It had been a long time since the last time he saw him and he didn´t want to risk losing him again under a mountain of paperwork.

With the first light of the dawn a group of knights appeared near the river that marked the limits of the monastery. He could immediately recognize his father between them, his armor and horse inseparable from him. He couldn´t avoid a smile at the sight of him. He was getting used to his new expressions, although they were still very limited in quantity and quality.

"Hello Father"

"Oh Byleth! Long time no see you!" Jeralt smiled at the sight of his son. He was wearing a bunch of flowers in his left hand. "You are wondering why I brought these flowers right?" he said "They are for your mother, but I would like to keep this talk private from the others" he told him, his voice a mere whisper.

Surprised by the revelation, Byleth accompanied his father to the graveyard of the monastery. He followed him until he stopped in front of a modest gravestone.

"Here rests your mother"

"Why is she here? I thought she died giving me birth after you left this place."

Jeralt´s face darkened

"She spent all his life working for the Church and she didn´t have any known relatives. This was her real home. That´s why she is here. I returned the body to the place where it belonged and left this place for good, at least until now."

Byleth sensed that his father wasn´t telling all the truth, but he considered inappropriate to continue pressing on that matter.

"How was she?"

"She was fragile, yet beautiful and she loved flowers. Her physical state didn´t allow her to go on trips around the continent, but I made sure that she had a taste of the world around her every time I returned to the monastery after a trip. She wasn´t very expressive, but the day she knew you were inside her she was more radiant than the sun itself. It´s a pity you couldn´t share more time with her, but I can assure you that she loved you and she didn´t regret giving birth to you" His father was smiling to him as he said that, although there was a melancholic aura around him.

"This is the ring I gave to her, when I proposed" he said, showing him a silver ring with a beautiful purple stone on it. When the time comes I would like you to use it for the person you love"

"Love" he thought Byleth. He loved his father, but he knew it wasn´t that kind of love what he was referring to. Manuela and Dorothea were constantly talking about it, but he wasn´t sure if they were right about it.

"I don´t know how to love"

His father sighed

"Love is not something that you can really learn. When it happens you will know. Don´t torture yourself too much about it" he said while he rubbed his hair. "It´s been a long time since the last time we met. You surely want to know about my whereabouts and I want to hear about yours. Let´s talk in my room"

He gently placed the flowers in front of the gravestone and headed to the main building.

Byleth lingered for a bit longer, he didn´t know how to feel about the revelation he had just heard. On the one hand, he was relieved to know the final resting place of her mother. On the other hand, he didn´t feel too much sorrow standing in front of her grave. "I don't really remember her even though she died for me"

"You shouldn´t blame yourself for her death. You have already heard your father. You barely knew about her, but now you can know a bit more about your origins."

"You are right." He examined closely the grave. "Sitri Eisner" he read. "She died young" he thought "In 1159"

"Wait a second! If you were born in the year 1159 of the imperial age and we are in the year 1180 of the imperial age and your birthday is in the Red Wolf Moon means that you are right now 20 years old"

"You are right Sothis"

"But how old I am? Do I have your same age? I don´t have any reference"

"You look younger than me"

"Are you calling me a child? Even though I helped you decipher your age. How disrespectful!"

"I didn´t want to offend you"

"Anyway you shouldn´t leave your father waiting for you, it´s been a while after all"

Byleth followed his father´s steps and headed to his office.

….

"Tell me first about what has happened to you since I left the monastery and I will do the same"

Byleth explained everything that has happened until now.

Jeralt´s expression was serious. After a few seconds he made his first question "Are you training with Lady Rhea?"

"Yes, I wanted to assist my students as a healer in a case of emergency and she was the most appropriate option"

"I understand your reasoning, but I can´t avoid feeling uneasy about it. Giving you an important position of responsibility within the monastery the moment she saw you and helping you in such a generous way. There is something that doesn´t make sense about it"

"Why do you distrust her?"

"Distrust is a harsh term to say. We used to be very close when I was young, but I´ve always felt that she kept too many things hidden from the rest. Trusting is a two way road, and I don´t think that she is fond of you, just for being my son, but right now I can only make conjectures about it. Is it true that there is an assassination plan against Rhea?"

"It is, the paper was found in Lord Lonato´s belongings, but we don´t know yet the identity of the conspirators."

"I don´t like this situation. Someone is moving in the shadows and we don´t even know where they are coming from"

"What about you?"

"There have been attacks from monsters in the territories of the Leicester Alliance. The trade was in danger and the merchants begged the Church for its help. We killed and disbanded most of them, but I´m afraid that it's a matter of time it happens again. The Alliance has never been a stable country and I suspect that these incidents are related to the rivalry between the different houses. I´m tired of these endless fights for power, but I guess that´s the reason why we had plenty of job in the first place" he laughed "And now you are not only a teacher, but you have to patrol the monastery. They should pay you the double"

Byleth nodded at him and looked to the clock of the wall.

"It´s about time I leave for my class"

"I know" he sighed "I would have liked to talk a bit more but I also have a ton of paperwork. If I didn´t know better I would think that Seteth hates me. Will you have a meal with your father?"

"Of course" he smiled

"You are smiling! You smile the same way she did" he said while he rubbed his hair. "Good luck son and see you later"

"See you dad"

After leaving his father´s office he headed to his class. On his way to it he came across with Edelgard, who was carrying a bunch of books.

"Good morning Professor. I was about to go to your class."

"Good morning Edelgard. Were you at the library?"

"Yes, I was borrowing some books to study later and you my teacher?"

"I was talking with my father"

"I heard he was on a mission in the Leicester Alliance. I´m sure he will be a great asset for our month´s task"

"That´s true. By the way Edelgard, I told you before that I would tell you about my age if I find out about it. I´m 20 years old and I will turn 21 the next Red Wolf Moon"

"You are really young" Edelgard was surprised by his revelation. "Although, you must admit it was strange not knowing your age. How did you find out?"

"When my mother gave birth to me she died so I took that year as reference."

"I´m sorry to have made such a tactless question. I beg your pardon."

"You don´t have to worry about that. It´s all in the past"

"If you say so" she gentle smiled to him "Shall we continue to the classroom?"

"Of course"

…

"Patrolling? Sounds very tiresome to me" Linhardt yawned

"I think that´s not the important part Linhardt. Why someone would want to kill the archbishop?" asked Dorothea

"The Church, as a mediator between the different noble houses, is in a position of power that can create resentment among those who are not favored by it. An assassination plan is an option to avoid further complications" Hubert chuckled

"I don´t find it funny Hubie, but I understand it better now" she sighed "Why everyone can´t just get along?"

"If we disturb them we are going to get ourselves killed!" screamed Bernadetta

"Calm down Bernadetta. The monastery is one of the safest places on Fódlan" reassured her Ferdinand.

"You will patrol the surroundings of the monastery in search of people or elements that could be related to this assassination plot. I will personally join the patrols. I will make a general patrol with Hubert and Edelgard. Linhardt and Caspar take care of the west side of the monastery. Dorothea and Petra will assist the knights in the patrols of the town next to the monastery. Ferdinand and Bernadetta, the main hall and east side of the monastery are yours"

"Understood Professor"

"Even if we are patrolling that doesn´t mean that I will allow you get distracted from your studies. We are just an auxiliary force. We will train as usual"

"That´s too much Professor" complained Linhardt. "How am I going to continue my investigations if I´m busy taking care of Caspar"

"I don´t need you to take care of me. A bit of walking won´t kill you Linhardt!"

"If there aren´t more questions we will start the class"

…

After the class has ended, everyone headed to their respective duties. The students of his house weren´t the only ones cooperating. The Golden Deer and Blue Lion´s students were also taking part.

"Before we start searching, it would be wise to discard those places that can´t be considered objectives of the plotters" Edelgard said

"If we consider the letter a mere distraction we can discard the place where the ceremony is going to take place. It would be unintelligent otherwise" Hubert said

"The Church has important amounts of gold and weapons of great value, acquired after centuries of acting as the mediator of Fódlan" added Byleth, recalling the information he had read at the library.

"It seems that you have been learning about the history of the Church" chuckled Hubert "You are right about the wealth of the Church and the weapons they have stored. I propose to search around the monastery to collect as much information as possible"

"I agree with Hubert. What place should we search first Professor?"

Byleth meditated for a second before answering.

"The Cathedral and its surrounding"

"A good choice." Edelgard nodded. "The cathedral is immense and I´m sure there must be something of value beneath its walls"

The cathedral was the biggest building of the monastery. It was built apart from the rest of facilities, a bridge binding it to the rest of the world.

The doors were wide open and the interior was crowded with commoners and nobles that were coming due to the celebrations of the coming of the goddess. Byleth headed to the right and found Seteth, examining an immense statue that was holding an axe.

Noticing him, Seteth saluted him with his usual serious voice.

"Good morning Professor. I see that you are already taking part in the patrolling. Is there something you need from me?"

"What are these statues?"

"The fact you don´t know about them worries me. They are the four saints of the Church. Their names were Cethleann, Cichol, Indech and Macuil."

The first two names made him remember the events of the valley of Zanado. A city in flames and corpses everywhere.

"They were the ones who thought in the War of Heroes"

"Exactly. You recall that at least" Seteth nodded. "As a member of the Church you should study more about its origins. I will take my leave for the time being and good luck with the patrolling"

As Seteth left Edelgard and Hubert were examining the statues.

"The statues are of considerable size but I don´t think they have any other particularity" observed Edelgard

"The Cathedral was built hundreds of years ago; there could be secret passages just in front of us. Besides, I sense a faint magic aura. If you don´t mind Lady Edelgard I wish to stay a bit longer"

"Do as you wish, I will go with the Professor to the other side of cathedral. Let´s meet outside the building after investigating the area"

Leaving Hubert with his thoughts they went to the left side of the Cathedral.

"Good morning Professor! I didn´t expect seeing you here" giggled Flayn, the little sister of Seteth.

"We are taking part in the investigation regarding the assassination plot of the archbishop. Do you know something of interest here?"

"Under us there are the tombs of those persons who are of special importance for the Church of Seiros. Seiros´s remaining itself are in a crypt under the cathedral, but I am afraid that the access is restricted for most of the year and even during this month the access is only allowed to the more superficial levels."

"Byleth, the access is guarded by me, so there is no need to worry!" shouted Alois, who was approaching them.

"With someone like you I´m sure we have nothing to fear" Flayn smiled

Leaving Flayn and Alois with their chattering they left the building. The day was getting cloudy, menacing rain.

"It seems that is going to rain. We should find a place to cover us from the rain"

"The main hall?"

"I think there is nothing worth of investigating there, but it´s better than to catch a cold. Don´t worry about Hubert, he will find us later. I wouldn´t like to disturb him now"

They entered the main hall and took a seat. The place was quiet except for the chattering and laughing of Silvain with a female student. Byleth observed that it was a different girl to the one he had seen the last month.

"I can´t stand someone like him." Edelgard sighed when she saw what he was looking "Instead of focusing on his duties he is just having fun and playing with the feelings of others"

"Is that love?" wondered Byleth

"I´m surprised to hear that word coming from your mouth my Teacher, but I highly doubt it is. I think he is just using her as a distraction. I barely know about him, but he will probably marry another noble as a duty to his house"

"Do the nobles usually marry for political reasons?"

"Most of them yes, although from time to time there are exceptions to that rule. Through marriages different houses can set aside their differences and even join forces."

"Is that your fate too?"

Edelgard looked directly at him.

"It may be. As the heir of the empire I have no time to seek for my own happiness. If my marriage can bring benefits so be it."

It was the answer he expected from her, though he felt a bit of pity for her.

"I didn´t expect to have such a talk with you my Teacher. May I ask why you are curious about it?"

"I was just curious about it. It seems that nobles and commoners treat the matter differently"

"You are right about that. You could consider that the institution itself is corrupted, since is used to preserve the status quo. Even in matters like this the nobility has casted its differences with the rest of the world." She said lost in though

The face of Lorenz came to his mind. He was the vivid example of what Edelgard was talking about. The Professors had already received complaints from female students regarding that matter.

"Professor Byleth"

Their conversation was interrupted by a small boy with a serious look on his face.

"Lady Rhea wants to talk with you. She will be waiting at the Audience Room"

"Who are you?"

"My name is Cyril and I am the personal assistant of Lady Rhea. Don´t make her wait Professor" and as he arrived he left.

"I will see you later Edelgard, take care"

"Take care you too Professor" she smiled to him, although her eyes were serious.

…

The archbishop was standing in the middle of the room when Byleth arrived. She was guarded by a group of fortress knights and Catherine.

"Thank you for coming Professor, you seem to be taking your role quite seriously"

"My students are focused on the task ahead too"

"And I thank you for that" she smiled "I´m afraid that due to the preparations of the ceremony I won´t be able to assist you any longer"

"You don´t have to worry, I thank you for your guiding"

"I summoned you to inform you about the night patrols. You will patrol the surrounding of the monastery once per week during this month. You don´t have to worry about your students. I wouldn´t want them to lose focus on their studies. Would it be ok to you?"

"No problem" although he could hear Sothis protesting against such measures.

"You will be accompanied during those patrols, it is safer that way"

"Who will be my companion?"

"I"

Jeritza came from behind him, wearing his usual mask.

"You will start from tomorrow night. I hope this doesn´t give you too much trouble"

"You don´t have to worry, I will do it"

After receiving the archbishop´s orders he headed to Manuela´s room. If he wanted to continue his formation she was the most appropriate option after the archbishop, despite her own problems.

He knocked the door of her room. He could hear a moaning. Manuela slightly opened the door only to close it violently when she realized who her visitor was.

"Professor Byleth, you should have told me in advance! Wait a second!"

He could hear a lot of noises coming from the room

"Oh, this is a disaster! Where is my clean dress?"

"Are you ok?"

"Don´t listen. You must be a gentleman Professor!"

Even if he wanted to, he couldn´t avoid hearing the disaster that was unfolding inside the room.

After a few minutes Manuela finally opened the door of the room, still catching her breath.

"Good morning Professor, please enter!"

It was evident that the room was still messy, but Byleth didn´t comment about it. Manuela showed him a seat, before taking one in front of him.

"Why have you come here Professor? I enjoy talking with you but I didn´t expect you coming here"

"I would like you to teach me magic"

"You don´t waste your words. Here I was thinking you came to hear me singing" she teased at him. "Can I ask why you are interest in the mysteries of magic? Hanneman is also versed in magic"

"I want to help my students. I´ve been receiving training from the archbishop, but she won´t be able to help me now."

"If you say it like that it makes me feel like a second choice" complained Manuela.

"I didn´t want to disturb you"

"You mean you didn´t want to endure me complaining about my romantic failures" she sighed "I can´t blame you, but is it wrong trying to find my significant other?"

"Is love really that important?"

"Byleth, I didn´t expect to hear those words from you, but it is. If your parents didn´t fall in love we wouldn´t been having this conversation"

"Many people decide to marry for duty" pointed out Byleth, recalling the conversation he had with Edelgard.

"You are getting used to the nobles here, but you are right. However, as a commoner you have more freedom than most of your students."

"Manuela, I was searching for you. Oh, Professor!"

Dorothea entered the room, visibly surprised with the presence of Byleth in the room.

"Don´t worry Dorothea, I was just talking with the Professor about love"

"Love? Really? If you can love there is nothing impossible" she smiled

"Don´t hold your breath. The Professor doesn´t look interested in that matter"

"Is that so?" Dorothea looked a bit disappointed. "We can´t lose our hope yet, Manuela"

"You say so, but you are the one who is living at its fullest Dorothea" Manuela smiled "I saw you with that handsome knight the other day"

"Don´t say it too aloud." She giggled "The Professor is still here"

"I don´t mind it" Byleth answered.

"Did you have to tell me something Dorothea?"

"I just wanted to have a meal with you, to remember the old times, but I can wait"

"We can have dinner together. It would be rude if I ignore this handsome Professor´s request"

"See you later then, bye Professor!"

As Dorothea left Manuela looked at him.

"I will help you, but with one condition"

"Which one?"

"You have to listen to the stories of my not so successful romantic life. Would you help easing the stress of this poor lady?"

"I will"

"Then let´s get started" she smiled

Byleth trained with her as she told him all kind of stories related to the past. By the end of the session he couldn´t avoid feeling a bit of sympathy for her.

"Thank you for listening to me. I hope that I was able to help you a bit"

"You did" he remembered Dorothea´s promise with Manuela. "You should go to the canteen"

"Don´t worry Professor" Manuela smiled "I won´t forget the promise I made to my disciple so lightly"

"Disciple?"

"Dorothea worked at the same company I did. I picked her myself and she gained quite a reputation. I´m very fond of her and I´m happy to see her around. She used to be a sad, insecure girl back then" she said, a nostalgic tone in her voice. "But we are not here to dwell into the past. I have a future to fight for. I will keep searching for my true love"

"Good luck"

"We will talk about our next session. I will tell you in a few days"

"Understood"

Closing the door behind her he left him humming a song. He still had a few hours of sunlight left and he decided to go to the fishing pond. He wasn´t surprised to see his father there. He was an expert fisher, after all. He was accompanied by one of the Golden Deer´s students.

"Hello Byleth. Are you feeling like fishing today?"

"So you really are Jeralt´s son. I don´t remember you were around when you came to our village. My name is Leonie"

"He had a pretty bad cold and stayed in the tent most of the time, that´s why you haven´t seen him until now"

"You are completely different to him" she observed. She looked at him with a challenging look in his eyes. "Even if you are his son be sure I won´t be easy on you. I was an apprentice of your father"

"Only for a short while Leonie, but I see that you are handling your own"

"Alois was also your apprentice, how many apprentices did you have father?"

"That´s a good question" he laughed. I have lost the count.

"How old are you Jeralt?" asked Leonie.

"I have lost the count of that too" Jeralt admitted

"Really? Isn´t that strange?"

"The age is just a number. I´m still strong and healthy, I can´t ask for more. You should pay attention to your fishing rod, you are about to miss a good catch"

"You are right!" Leonie ended the conversation and used her strength to catch a fish of considerable size.

"Do you want to compete son?"

"I will"

They stayed there for two hours, each one filling its bucket.

"We can call if a draw for today. Help me with the buckets Byleth"

He went with his father to the kitchen and handed the buckets full of fish to the staff. As compensation they rewarded them with a fried steak.

"It´s been a while since we had a meal together" Jeralt commented

"You are right" he admitted.

"I hope that the fancy folks you are teaching aren´t causing you any problem"

"They are working better as a team, but there is still much to improve."

"You look a bit different. You are getting more expressive. I guess that having these young people around you is helping you to get more expressive"

"It may be"

The rest of their chattering felt like the days when they were just him and the rest of the company. With these warmth feelings he left the canteen when the sun was already setting. He was heading to his room when he felt the presence of someone above him. When he looked up he found Edelgard riding a Pegasus by herself.

"Hello my Teacher" she smiled to him

"You have progressed a lot. I´m proud of you"

"After you left, the knights were asking for additional help in the sky. I wasn´t too confident at first but I don´t regret having made the decision to help"

"It seems you don´t need my help on that matter anymore"

"You are wrong" she said, her eyes maintaining his gaze. "I have a lot to learn from you yet. I wouldn´t mind training an aerial battle with you… and I would like you to show me the field of flowers I saw with you my birthday's night"

"With Pleasure" he gave her a light smile

"See you tomorrow then"

As she flew around the monastery, he couldn´t avoid feeling proud of her.

"I´m sure that´s the same way your father feels about you" pointed out Sothis.

"I guess you are right" he stayed a bit longer until he lost sight of her in the heights.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think that Jeralt really wanted to tell Byleth about his mother, but he didn´t want to explain the events related to his birth. The explanation that he made makes it look like that he was born outside of the monastery (maybe a village near it) and then he returned the body to the monastery and abandoned his position. You could consider it as a half lie made up by him to protect Byleth as he doesn´t know Rhea´s motives to employ Byleth at the monastery. The game version also has some incoherencies that are not really explored.


	12. Two sides of the same coin

**7/2 Blue sea moon**

Her body was too feeble to move. She was the last one alive, but she didn´t have hope to survive. "At least it will be over soon" she thought. She could hear the steps of someone coming closer, the shadows cast away by a torch.

"Grab her hand!" an old man shouted

The masked man, that accompanied him, grabbed her hand with an unnecessary strength, but she wouldn´t cry. "I have no more tears to shed"

She felt a strange light around her hand. The men around her had gone silent. "Is it the end?" she wondered as she opened her eyes. And then she could see it. A crest had appeared where there was only air. "A new crest"

"Success at least" the old man smiled, revealing its rotten teeth. "You have done well, your brothers and sisters would be proud of you if they were here"

"Don´t use your filthy tongue to name them!"

"You still have energy to defy us. Give her a lesson, but don´t kill her or our efforts would be wasted"

"I won´t cry and when the day comes I will pay your kind with the same bloody coin" she thought as darkness engulfed her.

She opened her eyes as the dawn came to her. She looked to her right and found the armored bear stuffy that her Professor had given her. Holding it tightly to her body, she breathed deeply. She couldn´t change the past, but she will make sure that the future changes the world for the better, even at the cost of her own happiness. "Even if I have to cooperate with them, I will make sure that their dreams turn to ashes in their mouths. I will pay them with their own blood". But she knew that to achieve that she needed to resist for the time being. Hubert had convinced her that in order to achieve her dreams, cooperating with them was the lesser of two evils. "Even now they belittle me", she thought, the fake smile of Tomas coming to her mind. "But I will eventually break free from their chains. I only need to endure it for a few months". Hubert was preparing the imperial succession in complete secret and that included keeping it hidden from his uncle Arundel. Everything was progressing as she expected, except one thing.

She didn´t know what to expect from her teacher.

He had saved her life and he had protected her and the rest of the students in various occasions and she noticed that he was opening to them. She felt a strange urge to make him trust her, no matter the cost. She had been told by Hanneman that Crests could condition the interactions with others, but that didn´t mean that they dictated everything. "If my suspicions are correct, we share the same crest". She was fascinated and scared of sharing the crest of creator with another person. And of all people it was probable that her Teacher was the one to hold it. "When the time comes I would like him to reach for my hand, but is that wise?" She already knew Hubert´s opposition to trust any secrets to her Teacher, as he was the unnatural object of fixation of the archbishop. The emperor agreed with that opinion, but her… "No, it´s better to not dwell on dreams. I must stay focused" she said to herself, although she was embracing her armored bear as she thought so.

When she opened the door Hubert was already there, awaiting his instructions for the day.

"Good morning Lady Edelgard. I hope you have rested well"

"Good morning Hubert, have you found any secret passage in the monastery"

"I´m afraid not. The magic I sensed in the statues was only a magic that preserves them against the passage of time. Nothing particularly relevant. However, I have kept hearing rumors about a place called the Abyss that should be located beneath the monastery."

"Abyss? It´s the first time I hear something like that. The more passages we find out before the end of the year the better. I command you to keep investigating on this matter"

"Consider it done" Hubert bowed to hear. "I´ve heard that our dear Professor has been assigned to patrol the monastery at night with Instructor Jeritza. Was that under your command?" he chuckled

"It isn´t" She didn´t like Hubert´s laughing on such a serious matter. "He is loyal to me, but he has his own tasks under my uncle´s command. I have ordered him not to attack the Professor. He has already been reckless on that matter"

"I´m sure they will get along" Hubert grinned "I will take my leave for now Lady Edelgard"

It was their free day and Edelgard didn´t want to stay idle so she decided to take a walk to the greenhouse. Inside the greenhouse there were present all kind of exotic species, some of them native from Brigid as Petra had told her. Some of the students had decided to plant their own plants, with irregular results. She recalled seeing Bernadetta, the usually shy girl taking care of the plants. "I guess that everyone has a place to relax" she thought.

It was then when he saw a familiar back in front of her. Her Teacher was examining closely a group of flowers he had planted. Edelgard found at first strange to see someone who lacked apparent emotions taking care of things like gardening, but she had come to get used to it. She didn´t want to interrupt him, but noticing her presence, he got up and looked at her.

"Good morning Edelgard"

"Good morning my Teacher. I didn´t want to disturb you"

"You have never been an annoyance to me. Don´t worry about that"

"May I ask what are you planting?"

"You can see it by yourself" he said to her, inviting her to come closer.

She approached him and looked at the flowers he was planting. There were all different kinds of species, but her attention was caught by the presence of Carnations.

"You can take as many as you want" he said to her.

"I feel honored, but I wouldn´t like to spoil your work"

"Consider it a gift if you want. It doesn´t spoil my work, quite the contrary" he said as he took a bunch of Carnations and hand them to her.

"Thank you my Teacher" she said, slightly blushed. "I´ve heard that you have a night patrol. Wouldn´t it be better to rest in preparation for the night?"

"I don´t need much time of sleep and I planned to go to the town to buy provisions"

"I can accompany you if you want"

"Of course. I have some work to finish here first. I will wait for you in the main entrance in an hour"

"Ok Professor I will be there"

She left the greenhouse and headed to her dormitory. She wanted to place the flowers she had received on her desk.

"Oh Edie, where are you going so fast?"

"Good morning Dorothea, I´m sorry I didn´t notice you"

"Where did you get these flowers? They are beautiful"

"The Professor… gave them to me"

"The Professor? I wonder why" she giggled

"There isn´t any particular reason for it. Stop implying things Dorothea" she said feeling embarrassed.

"Is that so? You look cute when you act like this Edie"

"Dorothea!"

"Just joking. What are you going to do?"

"I will accompany the Professor to the town"

Hearing that, Dorothea´s face lighten up again

"Just the two of you? Sounds like a date to me"

"Dorothea! Don´t say something like that aloud! They may hear us", she was starting to feel her cheeks getting hot.

"If you react like that you look more suspicious, but it wouldn´t be that strange. The Professor has a strange aura around him and his eyes… They look like they see right through you. He is also quite handsome. If he smiled more often he would be surrounded by girls. You have quite a competition"

"I told you that I´m not interested in such a way. I admire him as the leader he is, but I don´t have time for such matters"

"When you turn into the imperial princess you are so cold Edie" lamented Dorothea. "I was just happy to see you feeling more relaxed. Then does that mean that I can freely hunt the Professor? As Petra would say"

"I would consider it highly inappropriate"

"Ok ok" she giggled. "I have already plans for today. Treat well the Professor, Edie" she said, winking at her as she left.

As she continued her way to her room, she thought about Dorothea´s description of the Professor. Her Teacher´s eyes gave the sensation they could pierce through anything and even though he wasn´t the tallest he was at least a head taller than her. She couldn´t deny him to be attractive, but love was another matter. "In my path there is no time for that" she thought. "Hubert would have approved that answer" she sighed.

She placed the flowers on her desk. The sky was spotless as if the rains of the previous day never happened. With nothing more to do she headed to the main hall entrance. A gentle breeze was coming from the exterior and most of the students were enjoying their time outside. She saw a little white haired girl walking next to her.

"Hello Lysithea. What are you doing?"

"Hello Edelgard. I was just going to the library to study"

"You have always been very applied in your studies" she smiled to her. She couldn´t avoid but feeling a special proximity with her.

"Of course! I can´t waste my time here, I have a lot of things to do and not too much time left."

"Time, the same thing I wish I had", she thought to herself. "If you ever need my help I would gladly give it to you"

"Thank you Edelgard, I would consider it. For now, if you can forgive me"

"Of course. Good luck with your studies"

After a while her Professor arrived. He was wearing a white shirt, combined with light brown trousers. The cape he was wearing matched his eyes.

"Professor, you are not wearing your usual clothes"

"Until the sun sets it´s also my free day and I thought it would be appropriate to be outside. Does it bother you?"

"Not at all, quite the contrary. Shall we go then?"

"Yes"

They left behind the gates of the monastery; the town was a few kilometers from the monastery so it would take a while to arrive.

"What are you going to do?"

"I plan to buy new weapons for the rest of the class. I´m also interested in buying a tome of magic to continue my formation on that matter. Even if we stay here this month we will probably make more expeditions in the future"

"I see" she was satisfied with the planning of her Teacher. It would be inappropriate for him to be ill-equipped for the upcoming battles. "I´ve heard that Ingrid, a member of the Blue Lions has taken part in battles abroad using a Pegasus. May I be able to use one too?"

"I´ve thought about that for a while. However, I must request the authorization of Seteth and that would take some time"

"Oh I see", she felt a bit disappointed because she wanted to put into practice what she had learnt, but there was no use complaining about that.

The central square was full of activity. There were merchants selling all kind of devices and mercenaries were offering their services. Some of them recognized Byleth and came to greet him. "Even if he is inexpressive some people are fond of him" she thought. One of the mercenaries appeared to be a wyvern rider, the beast next to him. Despite its fearsome appearance Byleth caressed its face. Looking at her he said "There is no need to worry, if you show no fear it will do nothing to you"

She approached the wyvern and patted it on the head. She had to say on her tips to reach its head.

"The girl has courage" laughed the mercenary.

"She is my student"

"I´m still surprised you achieved a working post so quickly, but life hasn´t gone badly for us either. Send regards to your father!"

"I will" he nodded at him

Byleth spent the rest of the time buying equipment while Edelgard observed the different shops around her. The sky, which had been spotless until now, was quickly getting cloudy.

"I´m almost done" he said to him "Sorry if it was boring"

"Don´t worry Professor"

He went to a bakery and before she could understand what he was doing he handed her a sweet.

"Consider it a repayment for your company"

"You didn´t really need to do it, but I will receive it with pleasure" She was fond of sweets and it was a gift from her teacher after all.

The sky was turning grey, the sun nowhere to be seen.

"Professor, we have to hurry up or we will get soaked wet"

"I agree"

They walked at a lighter pace, but it started to rain when they were at the middle of the way. First it was just a drizzle, but the raining was quickly getting stronger.

"We are not going to make it" observed Edelgard

"You will" and as he said it, he covered her with his cape. It was big enough to be used as an umbrella.

"I can thank you enough, my teacher, but you are going to catch a cold"

"Even if I did, it´s my duty as your Professor to keep you well"

Such honesty was something Edelgard hasn´t experienced for a long time. It brought her memories of the times when her elder brothers and sisters took care of her. "Thank you my Teacher" she said, feeling warmth inside her heart.

"No problem" he said. She couldn´t see his face with the cape but she wondered if he had a light smile on his face.

They remained silent, each in their own thoughts until they arrive to the main entrance.

"Thank you for taking care of me"

"There is no need to thank me"

"You should change your clothes, I don´t want you to catch a cold"

"If you say so…"

"I don´t mean right now!" feeling a bit flustered.

"It was a joke"

"A joke?" Edelgard was surprised, her usually unemotional Teacher was joking about an event that just happened a few months ago. "You have surprised me, my Teacher. So it seems that you also have a sense of humor"

"Oh Teach, have you been swimming in the pond?"

Claude came near them accompanied by Hilda.

"I was just buying equipment in the town"

"Imperial Princess, you should take care of our Teach. You are going to fall ill"

"The Professor is a true gentleman, not like you Claude" Hilda reproached him, smiling at him. "You should help my too in times of need"

"You are too lazy for your own good." he laughed. "Seriously though, you should think a bit more about yourself Teach. Don´t you agree Edelgard?"

"I didn´t force him to lend me a hand Claude, if that´s what you imply".

"If you say so" he said a teasing smile on his face. "By the way have you heard about the opening of the new sauna? It´s going to take place next month. Would you like to give it a shot with me Teach?"

"A Sauna? I´ve never been to one"

"It´s quite simple really. You just sit and sweat. It may be an opportunity to deepen the bonds between us. Don´t you think it´s a wonderful idea? Does it mind you Edelgard?"

"I won´t fall for it Claude. You can do as you please, but I´m sure my Teacher will handle the heat better than you"

"You make look everything as a competition" he sighed "Bye Professor, Edelgard"

Claude left for the canteen, closely followed by Hilda.

"I will take a bath; I hope you have a good day Edelgard"

"It was certainly a good day Professor. I hope you have a good night guard"

"It may be eventful"

Edelgard had explicitly commanded Jeritza to constraint himself, but she still felt a bit nervous about the night´s outcome.

"Be safe" she was able to say

"There is no need to worry." he patted her head. I have nothing against Instructor Jeritza, he just enjoys fighting"

"If you knew the whole story" she thought. "If you say so" she answered. "See you tomorrow then"

"Of course"

After departing ways with her Teacher she decided to go to the library. "Even if I have to see that monster, Lysithea might be there" she thought

The sound of the rain could be perfectly heard above her as she walked through the crowed corridors as most people were taking shelter inside the monastery.

She finally arrived to the library, searching for the white haired girl. She found her at the bottom of the library, using her own magic to create a light to read.

"Hello again Lysithea, may I sit next to you?"

"Hello Edelgard, I have no problem"

She sat down next to her, taking a book about warfare with axes.

"What are you studying?"

"I´m preparing for next week´s certification exam. I´m confident I will pass, but I don´t mind reviewing for it."

Certification exams were at the disposal of the Professors. They were a way to measure how much their students had progressed. As every student had their own objectives or weaknesses most exams were individualized. Her Teacher preferred a practical approach, but looking at the concepts Lysithea was writing on a paper she was sure that Manuela preferred a theory oriented exam.

"I´ve heard from Professor Manuela that Professor Byleth has been taking magic classes. Is that true?"

Edelgard hadn´t heard from him that yet, but it wasn´t too difficult to imagine that with the archbishop busy Manuela was the second best option regarding to the teachings of white magic. Feeling a little relieved after hearing that she answered to Lysithea.

"He wants to protect us during our monthly tasks so he has been learning magic to achieve that objective. He is learning by himself too."

"That sounds interesting. I´m interested in learning faith magic, but Professor Manuela´s carefree personality doesn´t suit me the best."

"I can tell him if you want to learn with him, but you could say he is a student on that matter"

"I would be happy if you do it. Sometimes joining forces can let you achieve higher results and I´ve heard he is learning fast too." Lysithea said, while smiling at her.

Her Professor wasn´t the kind of person that refused to help someone, including students from the rest of the classes. After tutoring Dimitri last month, his popularity had skyrocketed and it wasn´t strange to see him answering questions or practicing with the students. However, with the preparations of the ceremony, he looked like he was having a break from that routine.

"As a symbol of gratitude take this" Lysithea said, while handing her a sweet. "I made it myself so make sure you give it a try"

"Thank you Lysithea I will gladly take it" she said, patting her head as her professor used to do to her.

"Don´t treat me like a child" she complained, but she didn´t refuse her hand.

They continued to study, chatting from time to time for a few hours. Luckily, Tomas was nowhere to be seen.

The day was starting to turn dark when they left behind the library. She headed to the canteen.

Most of the students were having dinner there, including her teacher, who was already wearing armor and was sitting next to Instructor Jeritza. The Instructor was wearing his usual mask and his armor was completely silver. "Quiet the irony compared to his real armor" she thought.

"May I take a sit my Teacher?"

"Of course Edelgard, do you mind Jeritza?"

"Not at all" Jeritza was sipping a cup of tea but she noticed he was paying special attention to her.

"May I ask what areas are you going to patrol?"

"We will start with the walls and the outside of the cathedral, and then we will patrol the subsoil of the monastery. We have orders to make sure that there are no breaches there"

"I hope for the best"

"Don´t worry, tomorrow I will be teaching you as usual" he said while sipping tea.

"I´m happy to hear that, but take a rest after that. Even if you are strong you need to rest too."

He nodded at her as a response, but the look of his eyes was a bit different. "Was it warmer?"

"I won´t disturb you any longer, see you tomorrow then." She smiled to him and with a quick glare she sent a quick reminder to Jeritza. Jeritza´s head moved a mere inch, but she knew he remembered.

When she returned to her room she found Hubert waiting for her.

"I hope you had a good day Lady Edelgard" he said bowing to her.

Remembering everything that has happened to her she couldn´t avoid showing a brief smile.

"It was eventful"

"I have good news to tell you. I have found a passage that didn´t appear in the documents we were already holding. It is not very useful as it only connects a storeroom with the wineries, but that gives me hope about the possibilities of finding additional passages in the following days."

"I´m glad to hear that. Jeritza will inform us in case he finds something with the Professor"

"Should I write a letter about the new findings?"

"It shouldn´t be of much use…" she stopped what she was saying when an idea came to her mind. Her uncle had already settled the plans for the tomb raid, but he was asking for more information about possible additional passages within the monastery. If they gave them the information they wished they would be asking more with nothing in return. However, if they gave to them some useless information they may give up about the influx of information he was currently demanding.

"Report about it. They may give up on asking constantly information."

"Feigning incompetence to avoid giving them too much leverage?" Hubert chuckled. "It´s a small thing, but knowing their arrogance they may truly believe we are not competent enough for their standards. An interesting plan I dare to say Lady Edelgard"

"Write it at once. I will go to sleep now Hubert. Good night"

"Good night Lady Edelgard. I will make sure to give the letter tomorrow". He said bowing again at her.

After closing her door, she felt at peace. She had to be careful to avoid provoking them, but she would do everything she could to hinder their progress. She sat at the chair in front of her desk and gently touched the flowers she had received from her professor. Their vivid colors made her feel at ease.

"I have to make sure to tell Byleth about Lysithea request" she thought, writing it down on a paper with a delicate calligraphy. She opened the window of her room, letting a gentle breeze embrace her. "As my day ends his watch begins" she thought. She looked at her surroundings. She was getting used to the monastery. She had always felt curious about the place where his father and mother fatefully met. Now she was there and with the company of the others, she was starting to feel at ease. "Even if it doesn´t last for too long I will treasure these days forever". She was sure that Hubert felt the same way, although he wouldn´t openly admit it. "If I only had more time, but I won´t waste the time that has been granted to me"

Feeling tired she entered her bed; embracing the stuffy beard she felt secure enough to indulge herself into the world of dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing to report Professor!
> 
> Off topic: Edelgard´s maddening/classic paralogue was nightmarish. Edelgard was the mvp, but credits are due to Byleth avoiding all those Wyvern Lords. I did it second try and even farmed a bit the infinite spam, but it was really tense. I plan to use this paralogue when the time comes. Currently chapter 16, but not on a hurry to finish the route.
> 
> By the way, I really appreciate the kudos. I´m happy to see that there are people out there enjoying my story. :) Stay safe!


	13. A world he ignores

**7/2 Blue sea moon (night)**

The sun had already set when Byleth started his watch alongside Jeritza. Most of the students had already returned to their dormitories, although the most religious of them were assisting a mass in the cathedral. A cool breeze was coming from the north, but both of them were unaffected by it. They continued to walk in complete silence.

"There is no use of patrolling the walls with the knights of Seiros already here" finally interrupted Jeritza. "We should be searching for secret passages"

"I agree with you. The grounds around the cathedral are the most ancient ones. Perhaps we will find something of interest around there."

The place Byleth was most interested about was the Goddess Tower, the edification was out of limits and seemed abandoned, but that just increased his curiosity.

When they had already passed the bridge connecting the Cathedral to the rest of the facilities, Byleth and Jeritza came across with Mercedes, who was assisting the Church´s mass.

"Good evening Professor, Instructor Jeritza. I hope you are doing well" she said with a gentle smile on her face.

"We are just patrolling. You should be heading to your dormitory" Jeritza´s voice was neutral, but he could sense a slight change in his voice.

"Yes I know, I will pray to the Goddess for your safety"

"She is a bit older than the rest of the students; she may be around my age." Byleth thought.

"Do you have any suggestions Professor?"

"I have already explored the Cathedral, but I would like to explore the Goddess Tower too"

"That place it´s out of bonds, but I agree with you. The attackers won´t care about the rules of the church. We shouldn´t be limiting ourselves."

The Goddess Tower´s surroundings were empty and the bars that surrounded it were rusted. They climbed the bars and entered through the main gate. The inside of the tower was completely dark, so Byleth decided to use magic to create a tiny flame on his hand. With the illumination provided by the flame Byleth looked at his surroundings.

The place was clearly abandoned and it looked like it was used as a storehouse.

"There is nothing of interest in this level; we should go to the lower ones"

Nodding at him. Byleth followed Jeritza to the basement of the tower. There were no major differences to the entrance floor, but Byleth sensed a strange itching in his body.

"Do you sense it too?" Jeritza said to him. "That´s the proof that some magic is present here"

Touching the walls Jeritza suddenly stopped in front of a statue, which represented Saint Seiros, he couldn´t avoid but feeling a strange feeling of familiarity.

"There must be an entrance here; the problem now is how to proceed"

Byleth looked at the statue. She was holding a shield but the sword was missing. Taking his own sword he placed it on the statue´s free hand. The moment he placed the sword, the wall behind them disappeared.

"An illusory wall" Jeritza laughed "Take your sword Professor Byleth, we may need it down here" Taking the sword, the pair of warriors entered the passage opened to them.

There was no natural light down there, and even the flame casted by Byleth could only illuminate their path a few meters ahead. The corridor they were following was going deeper into an unknown place.

"This monastery is full of mysteries" admitted Byleth

"The monastery has been around for 1000 years. Even a lifetime wouldn´t be enough to discover most of them"

They arrived to a crossroad, with three paths ahead of them.

"What path should we choose?"

The three of them looked identical. Byleth threw a fireball to the path of the middle, when the flame passed the arc of the entrance it immediately disappeared.

"Magic and it doesn´t allow us to see further" chuckled Jeritza. Jeritza then threw a rock to the path to the left. After waiting for a while without any sound to be heard that path was discarded. The path to the right as well.

"It seems that our only way to advance is to continue forward. Jeritza, prepare your sword, we don´t know what awaits in front of us"

"You as well" grinned Jeritza.

As they crossed the entrance they were engulfed by complete darkness. They couldn´t see anything, but they could hear and Byleth sensed the presence of something coming forward them.

Sensing the imminent danger Byleth jumped to avoid the incoming attack and nailed his sword into its unknown enemy. The sound he heard made him realize it was not human.

Jeritza assisted him, using his sword as well. As the screams of the beast ended the darkness around him dissipated. Casting again a fire spell Byleth was able to see the corpse of the beast they have slain. It was a giant worm with a length of approximately three meters.

"A giant worm, although this one wasn´t an adult yet. We should continue our path"

They continued walking, but the corridor seemed to have no end. He was starting to wonder if they were walking in circles when they arrived to an immense room. There was an altar in the middle, and the statues of the four saints of the Holy Church were surrounding it. By the look of it they were in a worship place, long ago forgotten.

"This place may be the ancient location of the current cathedral" Byleth pointed out.

"I agree. It´s a pity we can´t go to the bottom of the room, we are too high"

Byleth could see different entrances to the room at its lowest level, but the path they had chosen was at least fifty meters above the floor of the room. Jumping from that distance would be suicidal.

"We have to follow the only way we have left." He admitted.

As they left the room, Byleth couldn´t avoid feeling uneasy about the secrets surrounding the Church. "How can we protect a place we know almost nothing about?"

"This place is really big, but don´t worry too much for now. I have the feeling we will return to this place someday." Sothis said

"I share the same feeling" he thought.

After a while the path they were following started to ascend until they arrived to a statue similar to the one they had seen at the start of their adventure. Placing the sword in the saint´s hand the wall beneath it opened, leading them to the basement of one of the perimeter towers.

"It seems that our little adventure has ended" observed Jeritza "We have appeared in another place, we must have taken another path by accident"

"This place is full of hidden paths"

"We shouldn´t inform about this to the archbishop, since we have entered a place out of bonds. Besides, we haven´t found anything useful for the current investigation."

Byleth admitted he was right. The altar may have an historical interest, but he couldn´t sense nothing particularly relevant in the room, and there were no signs of magic there.

"I guess that the path we have found worked as a shortcut a long time ago, but now it has no useful purpose"

"We still have two hours of patrolling. What should we do now?"

"We should head to the treasury room" Byleth said.

"Understood"

….

**7/3**

The sun appeared upon them with nothing relevant to report. After leaving Jeritza at the main hall, Byleth returned to his room as he had a class to prepare. His legs felt a bit tired after all the walking done during the night wearing armor, but he could endure it. After changing his clothes he headed to the Black Eagle´s classroom, which was empty. It took a while until the first of the students arrived, Byleth didn´t need to look to know who had arrived.

"Good morning Edelgard"

"Good morning Professor? How was yesterday´s patrol?"

Byleth didn´t mind telling her, but remembering Jeritza´s word he answered

"We found a new passage, nothing really relevant, but as we were out of bonds I beg you to remain silent"

"A secret kept from the archbishop" Edelgard looked satisfied. "You don´t have to worry my Teacher, I will keep it a secret"

"We went to the Goddess Tower and we found a hidden passage in the basement, after hours walking we arrived to the basement of one of the towers that surround the monastery. On our way we found a place that looked like the former location of the current cathedral, but I didn´t sense anything relevant about it"

"I´ve heard rumors about a place located under the monastery itself called the Abyss. The place you found out may be a part of it. However, I agree with you. I doubt that the plotters would be trying to reach for a place like that. Their objectives must be more easily accessible, at least for them"

"Your deductions may be right, but for now we have to keep patrolling"

"Of course, there is no other option. By the way Professor, Lysithea had commented me that she would like to practice magic alongside you. She is a skillful magician, but she finds her white magic lacking. Would you agree to practice with her?"

"Lysithea" thought Byleth. "She is the youngest student and a member of the Golden Deer." He couldn´t avoid feeling a similarity between Edelgard and Lysithea. "Perhaps is the hair"

"I don´t mind, but I´m a student too on that area"

"She doesn´t mind" Edelgard smiled to him "She thinks that learning together can let us to achieve greater results if both parties are motivated. I agree with that too"

"Then it´s settled." He said, nodding at her.

There was nothing much to be said and the rest of the students had started to appear so Edelgard sat in her usual place in front of his desk.

"Good morning Professor" they greeted him as they entered his class.

The last one to arrive was Hubert, who was still wearing rider's boots.

"This one has been busy too" observed Sothis.

"Now that everyone is here we will commence the class. As most of you might know I´ve been patrolling last night, but that doesn´t mean I will be easier on you"

"And here I had the hope that you would be more sympathetic Professor" complained Linhardt.

"Today we will fight with axes. An axe is stronger than a sword, but it lacks accuracy. If we get used to its pros and cons we will be able to handle those who use it easily"

"Do the mages have to do the same role?" asked Dorothea

"Even if in most cases you shouldn´t be in such situation some experience with then should help all of you to avoid its hits"

"Linhardt with an axe sounds interesting" laughed Caspar.

They started practicing in front of the class. Edelgard and Petra were doing great, but he wasn´t surprised by it, since he knew that the axe was the most preferred weapon of Edelgard and Petra was well versed in all kind of weapons. Hubert was doing well, his axe releasing an ominous light. "He is using magic on his training axe" he realized.

They were like that for a few hours. The most remarkable events were when Dorothea knocked down an overconfident Ferdinand and when Bernadetta was able to disarm Hubert in an attack of panic.

"You all did well and you Bernadetta. You really have strength in your hands. You could fight in the frontlines alongside Edelgard, Petra, Ferdinand and Caspar"

"Impossible, I refuse! I prefer to stay behind" cried Bernadetta

"I know, I was just joking"

"Joking?" most of his class was looking at him with a strange look in their eyes.

Edelgard couldn´t avoid laughing.

"It seems that they are surprised with this side of you, my Teacher. To be fair I was surprised to see you capable of joking too"

"A joke or not, I don´t want to fight in the front lines, I will train harder with my bow"

His students started to leave, Edelgard and Petra were reassuming their flying instructions and Dorothea and Bernadetta headed to the greenhouse, Hubert apologized himself and left without telling him where he was going and Caspar was talking aloud about a fight and a bet with someone.

The one´s remaining in the class were Ferdinand and Linhardt, although Linhardt was sleeping so it couldn´t be counted.

"Professor" Ferdinand said with a smile "What do you think about my progress?"

"You are doing well"

"Well is not enough if I don´t surpass her. Tell me sincerely, who is the most capable between the two of us, me or Edelgard?"

"Edelgard"

"I didn´t expect that answer" he sighed "But I will show you that I am the one to surpass her. As the prime minister´s son is only my duty to assist the emperor and to that end I must be more capable than her"

"You have quite the confidence, but I don´t think you should compare to her"

"Why not? It is a way to keep motivated. Edelgard hasn´t defeated you in battle yet, right? Allow me to defy you in battle!"

"If you want to"

They left the class and walked in opposite directions. Ferdinand picked up his lance and Byleth picked one too. He would use the fight as an opportunity to continue improving his lance skills.

"The same weapon option to give the fairest combat? I like it; you really look like a noble"

They charged at the same time, their spears meeting. Byleth hit Ferdinand twice, but his armor protected him. Despite its armor, Ferdinand´s counterattacks were fast, but he was too straightforward. Feigning a thrust Byleth changed the arc of the attack and hit Ferdinand in the face with the base of the weapon.

"My face!"

Byleth quickly applied some healing to the area affected, returning it to its original color.

"I accept my defeat, but I will eventually defeat you. By the name of Ferdinand von Aegir I promise to do so. However, it would be bad manners to leave you like that. Allow me to invite you for some tea"

"Tea?"

"Yes. A good cup of tea can improve your mood considerably. I planned to have some tea with Lorenz, but he wouldn´t mind sharing the table with you too Professor"

"I wouldn´t mind"

"Then come with me and I will teach you the secrets to have an eventful teatime conversation. First of all you have to choose subjects that are of interest to your interlocutor. A charismatic person would always choose depending of the person that is in front of him/her. The second key is the tea that you choose. There are many flavors, but most people like or despite specific flavors. Choosing a favorite flavor can ease the mood. Only two rules and easy to remember, don´t you think Professor?"

"I agree"

"Very well. Then let´s meet with Lorenz. I am sure he be will happy to have your company as well"

He followed Ferdinand to his room, where Lorenz was already waiting. The Golden Deer student greeted him with a flamboyant gesture.

"When you were talking about respectable individuals I thought only of you Ferdinand, but it seems that you had this little surprise prepared for me all along Ferdinand"

"It was a great coincidence, but I´m pleased with the Professor´s presence too. I was illustrating him about the secrets to have a meaningful teatime."

"Oh I see. Then it would be advisable to start with the basics. Have you any experience brewing tea Professor Byleth?"

"No"

"A quick and efficient answer, as expected from the Professor", smiled Ferdinand. "As noblemen it's our duty to illustrate him about the hidden secrets of this art, don´t you think Lorenz"

"You have just read my mind Ferdinand" laughed Lorenz

"These ones are so full of themselves. They remind me of a fish with a peculiar shape"Sothis said

"A blowfish?"

"Exactly! A bit more and they could fly without the help of Pegasus and wyverns"

Byleth couldn´t avoid showing a slight smile on his face.

"Look Lorenz, our words have moved the Professor at least" Ferdinand said proudly, oblivious to the real motive behind his light smile.

Ferdinand and Lorenz gave him a seminar about everything related to the teatime. Byleth was trying to memorize the different types of tea when Ferdinand said something that he caught his attention.

"The Bergamot tea is a good option to those who like a sweet taste. It is also Edelgard´s favorite as I can give proof when I handed it to her as a gift for her birthday 17th Birthday"

"You shouldn´t show favoritism with the flavors that you remember. You should learn everything. I will examine you tomorrow" Sothis said in a joking tone.

"There are too many of them" Byleth murmured

"You don´t have to worry Professor, even if you don´t remember all the names you will be guided by the shop owners in case you have doubts. As a payment of your attention you can get this tea set. I already have a new one so you can keep it for you"

"Thank you Ferdinand"

"Now returning to the topic, where did you buy your magnificent sword Lorenz?"

Lorenz and Ferdinand talked for an hour, but Byleth didn´t mind as he was paying attention to the way they were talking and the topics that they chose. When the teatime had already ended he had an approximate idea about the way it worked.

"It was a wonderful time as always Lorenz"

"Words cannot express the pleasure I feel every time I share a cup of tea with you Ferdinand"

"I can´t stand this anymore. How someone can talk so much about himself?" Sothis was complaining

After assuring them he had a great time, Byleth left the student´s dormitory. He was thinking about what to do next when a voice he had got used to hearing entered his thoughts.

"Hello my Teacher. May I take some time from you?"

"Of course Edelgard"

Edelgard smiled to him. She was accompanied by Lysithea.

"We were searching for you, but I couldn´t find you"

"I was with Ferdinand and Lorenz"

"I bet Ferdinand insisted in fighting with you to testify his superiority over me." She sighed. "He is constantly trying to compete with me, even if I refuse. I guess that you can say he has a will of steel"

"Lorenz is not so much better. He likes to compete against Claude. He is not bad, but he should admit his own limits" added Lysithea.

"I know that you have been asked for too much today, but could you please train with us?"

He was starting to feel tired, but he didn´t want to disappoint her.

"I will do what I can"

"I´m happy to hear that"

"More training? You are strange. I agree with the sleepy guy" Sothis complained

He taught Lysithea everything he had studied until then while Edelgard accompanied them reading a book. As they practiced together he noticed the quick pace at which Lysithea was assimilating the different concepts. It´s hard working personality was similar to Edelgard´s.

"I agree. They also have the same hair. A quite unusual one I dare to say"

Sothis was right, Fódlan´s hair varieties were notable, but he hadn´t seen that color in a young person until he met her. Both of them were also of small height, although Lysithea was the youngest student. Seeing two persons with so many similarities left Byleth intrigued.

"What are you thinking Professor?" Lysithea asked

"Nothing in particular. Sorry for being absent minded. You are hard working"

"Of course. I´m glad that you have noticed that, most people think it is because I´m talented, but it is mainly thanks to my efforts"

"What do you think of the Professor´s guiding Lysithea?" Edelgard said approaching them

"I´m satisfied. I would like to practice again with you when you have time."

"I wouldn´t mind"

Lysithea left them with a wide smile on her face.

"Thank you for your help my Teacher."

"It wasn´t a problem. Both of you look really similar"

"You mean that because our physical appearance?"

"Not only that, but both of you are hard working and don´t like to waste your time"

"You have a point there Professor. In fact, I must admit I´m fond of her."

"Do you need any help?"

"Don´t worry Professor, I don´t wish to exhaust you any longer. We can leave our training for tomorrow"

"Understood"

"Rest well Professor, I wouldn´t want to see you ill"

Edelgard was preparing to leave when Byleth called her name

"Edelgard"

"Yes, my Teacher?"

"Would you like to have a cup of tea with me someday?"

He wanted to put into practice what he had learnt and he instinctively thought of Edelgard as an appropriate option for a first time inviting someone.

Edelgard looked surprised, but she didn´t look disgusted by the proposition. "I wouldn´t mind my Teacher, but may I ask why me?" she said, her right hand fingers toying with her hair.

"I just wanted to invite you the first. I don´t want to make you feel uncomfortable if you don´t want to"

"I gladly accept your request. Shall we set up a date?"

"Is the next week good enough for you?"

"Yes, of course. If you want we can stay in the gardens. There are some tables there and it feels better than staying inside"

"Then it´s settled"

"See you tomorrow. I hope you rest well."

"You too, sweet dreams"

Looking a bit blushed with his last response Edelgard returned to the dormitories.

"It seems that you have taken a liking to the little Princess"

"It is my student, after all"

"You say so, but you are inviting her the first time. To humans doing something for the first time holds a special meaning, right? Why would you favor her?"

Byleth thought about that. He had started to grown fond of his students, but even among them he held her in a special regard.

"I guess that it is the person with whom I have spent more time since the battle against those bandits."

"You are right about that, but the other two students were also there and you decided to tutor her."

"I guess that her being the most reserved she reminded me of myself."

"I see. There are without a doubt some similarities between both of you. However, I think the origin of that is different in both of you"

"What do you mean?"

"According to your father you have been always like this. You can say that is your true personality, even though it is slightly getting warmer. In the case of the little princess I suspect that is the environment around her what has made her to be like she is. The result may be the same, but the origins are completely different"

"Being forced to change your inner self because of external pressures sounds sad"

"Human relations are difficult. Everyone has their own story, although I refuse to hear the stories of the two blowfishes you had a tea before."

"You are too harsh" a small smile forming on his face. "They are not blowfishes they are Lorenz and…

"Ferdinand von Aegir. It is the only thing I have learnt about them. I don´t mind if you have a cup of tea with the little princess, but I forbid you to have any teatime with those two."

"Understood"

"I was half joking, but you can take it as a command if you want" Sothis said while yawning. "I already feel tired; you should also take a rest. We wouldn´t want your students to worry about you right?"

"You are right, I need to rest too"

"Something I can agree with you" Sothis smiled. "Enough for today, time to rest!"

Byleth returned to his room and placed the tea set that Ferdinand had given to him on his desk.

The moment he entered the sheets of his bed he felt into a deep sleep. And like this ended his day of discoveries.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The place described by Byleth is the map 2 of the DLC. I´m just presenting the area, before the events of the story take place there.


	14. Fond memories

**7/4 Blue sea moon**

Edelgard opened her eyes feeling still tired. She had spent part of the night writing letters again. She hadn´t received yet any letters from her uncle, but she knew he would be displeased with the little progress that had been made. She washed her face and changed her clothes to the usual school uniform. When she opened the door, Hubert was missing. "He may be at the stables yet" she thought.

The monastery was full of secrets, thanks to her Teacher and Jertiza she had learnt of a new passage, but the amount of hidden corridors and entrance was astonishing. "How many secrets does this place hold? I need to learn the most of them if I want my plans to succeed". Unfortunately, she wasn´t the only one carrying investigations about the secrets of the monastery. She suspected that Tomas was also searching, although she could do nothing to stop him. "Not yet at least"

She arrived to the class, but the Professor wasn´t there. She usually arrived earlier than necessary to the Professor´s class, but it was strange not seeing him around yet. "He may be oversleeping?" she wondered. She decided to find out. After all, as the leader of her class it was her duty to support her Professor.

She arrived to the front of the room and knocked the door. "Professor, are you still there?"

The door suddenly opened, her Professor´s face appearing in front of her.

"Good morning Edelgard. I´m sorry I´ve overslept a bit."

"There is no problem; there is still plenty of time. I was only surprised to not seeing you there."

"Thank you for worrying about me, let´s return to the class"

They walked together towards the class.

"What are you going to teach us today?"

"I think it would be useful to teach everyone about the use of gambits. In a battlefield you don´t just receive orders, but sometimes you have to give them too. Commanding is a responsibility that most students should experience"

"That´s true. Even if we are individually strong a poor commanding could led to a crushing defeat"

"I don´t think you will have any problems. Have you experienced leading armies?"

"I wouldn´t dare to call it an army, but back in the Empire I was formed to give commands in an efficient manner."

Byleth had a pensive gaze as he asked his next question.

"How is the life in the Imperial capital?"

"It is the biggest city of Fódlan, but there is more to it. The city holds the biggest Opera House of the continent and its channels and public gardens are one of the most beautiful places of the known world. The imperial palace with its magnificent architecture can be seen from every place of the capital and the views from the imperial palace are truly splendid. If you wish I could guide you if you ever come to the capital."

"I would like to, but I´m not sure that my company would be suitable in a place with such number of nobles"

"You said that because of Ferdinand?" she sighed "I must admit that most nobles are troublesome, but don´t think of yourself as someone unworthy. Besides, I would really like you to come"

"Thank you, I will remember it"

"When the year ends, maybe" she thought.

When they arrived to the class she took her usual place. The Professor started to draw on the board different military formations. After a few minutes the students began to arrive to the class, Hubert among them. He had an exhausted expression on his face, but he had a satisfied aura around him. He sat beside him, without looking at her he said with an almost inaudible voice "Everything is progressing as expected Lady Edelgard"

Edelgard was satisfied with the response. She and Hubert were working on many fronts. She knew that they were walking on thin ice, but if the plans they have developed worked it would have been worth it.

"Good morning everyone. Today we are going to learn about military tactics and the use of gambits. Now that you have started to learn the basics of teamwork I think we could test your leading of subordinates."

"That´s part of our military training as nobles Professor. I´m sure we won´t have any problems with that"

"There are commoners among you Ferdie, don´t forget about that"

"Sorry I didn´t mean to disrespect"

"Bernadetta can lead from her room, is safer there"

"Bernadetta, why are you talking in third person? Is this too a Fódlan tradition?"

Byleth cleared his throat, silencing everyone.

"Everyone will lead a group, no exceptions. There won´t be a practice battle for now, until you handle the basics of the different formations"

"Thank you Professor, if you were to give us another practice session I would have left the monastery for good" said Linhardt

"How can you abandon us like that Linhardt" said an exasperated Caspar "We are all on the same boat here!"

"Just kidding Caspar, I have much to learn about crests"

The class continued without major problems. Byleth´s explanations were straightforward and easy to grasp, even with those with little experience leading others.

"Study for it. We will have an exam the next week"

"An exam?" complained Caspar.

"Yes, those who fail will have a special session of avoiding magic spells from me"

"You are joking, right?" said a slightly worried Dorothea.

"Maybe"

"I don´t get your new sense of humor Professor" complained Linhardt. "I will study. It would be more troublesome to avoid your attacks"

Everyone started to leave except for Edelgard, who approached her Teacher´s desk.

"I have to congratulate you my Teacher. Your explanation was really easy to grasp, you should someday write a book about military tactics. I would gladly read it"

"I´ve just told what my father taught me. I don´t need to write a book, it´s enough to me to teach all of you directly"

"I´m fortunate to receive your teachings then. Would you mind practicing with me Professor?"

"Of course. I remembered what I promised to you"

They went to the practice room; Edelgard picked an iron sword and Byleth an axe.

"It looks like we are changing our battle roles Professor"

"I´m not the only one who benefits from teaching you. Learning together is more efficient"

Sword an axe met, each of them holding their ground. The world around them was reduced to nothing as they were completely focused on each other. Their dance continued for 30 minutes and ended in draws.

"You have got better Edelgard."

"Thank you. I´m happy to see the results of my training."

"Let´s try a different style now then" Byleth said changing his axe for his usual sword.

"I agree with you" she said, picking her axe. "Don´t restrain yourself, my Teacher. I will give my best too" The battle that followed was something to be remembered. They both fought with all their strength and the fight only concluded when both of their weapons broke.

"A good fighting I must admit. You would be a fearful enemy to fight I dare to say"

Hearing that Byleth looked at her

"I don´t wish to be your enemy Edelgard"

"I share the same feeling. Forgive me my Teacher. I was just appraising you" she said her true fears hidden behind a gentle smile. "That´s enough for today, I´m sure you will be busy with the preparations for the exam"

"Not really. I already know what I want to ask. I was planning to fish before my watch begins"

"I wouldn´t mind accompanying you then, for the time being"

They left and returned to her Teacher´s room, where he took a bucket and his fishing rod. There were students near the fishing pond, but she didn´t see any of the Black Eagle´s student.

Byleth started fishing while Edelgard accompanied him with her gaze, although her mind was reviewing the different plans she was setting up. After a while, her Teacher interrupted her thoughts.

"Don´t you want to come closer?"

"I´m afraid to admit that I´m scared of big bodies of water. I can´t swim."

"Would you want to learn?"

Edelgard looked at him surprised. She was thankful for his proposition, but she knew that Hubert would without a doubt disapprove. Besides, she didn´t have time for that now.

"I´m honored by your proposal, but for now I cannot accept it. Maybe in the future"

"Ok" Byleth expression was his usual self so it was difficult to discern if he was disappointed by her refusal.

When his bucket was full of fish the Professor approached her.

"I´m done here, thank you for accompanying me"

"No need to thank me. Good luck on your watch"

"Don´t worry" he said nodding at her.

"Lady Edelgard I was searching for you…"

Hubert was approaching, but he suddenly stopped when he saw her Professor next to her.

"Excuse me Professor, but I must discuss a matter with Lady Edelgard"

"Go ahead, I was leaving anyway. Goodbye Edelgard, Hubert"

"Goodbye Professor"

Hubert waited until he lost sight of him.

"May I ask what were you doing with the Professor, Lady Edelgard?"

"Nothing in particular, Hubert. I had a training session with him and I was just watching him fishing"

"You seem to have an interest on him, but I must remind you that we don´t know if we should trust him. It would be wiser to spend the less time as possible with him."

"That would be a waste of resources and I told you that I have the hope he will come to our side"

"That can only be considered as wishful thinking. A dangerous bet, I must say."

"Hubert, I know that you worry about me, but I promise that I haven´t told him anything that would affect our plans. You could say that I´m analyzing him"

"I wonder what important information you have learnt watching him fishing" realizing the comment he had just made he immediately apologized. "Forgive my insolence, I overstepped"

"You don´t have to apologize. I understand your way of reasoning and I can´t really blame you for telling me the truth"

"I came here to hand you this" he said while giving her a letter. "Lord Arundel doesn´t seem pleased by the results of our inquiries" he chuckled.

"That´s just normal. They belittle us. I thank you for your diligence"

"A servant doesn´t need appraisal Lady Edelgard" he said bowing to him.

"Don´t belittle yourself. You have my trust, after all"

"I will take my leave. I wish you a good day" he said bowing again and leaving.

"Is it wrong to try to make him join my side?" she lamented in thoughts.

….

**7/9**

The days passed without too much trouble, their students progressing in their studies of military tactics. Everyone had passed the exam and as a reward Byleth gave them a free day off. However, Byleth sensed that something was worrying Edelgard. She had been more reserved than usual and that sudden change intrigued him the most.

"Why won´t you ask her?" Sothis asked

"She may want to keep her things for herself"

"But you are worried about her. If you don´t ask you may never know what´s worrying her"

"I can ask her during our teatime together"

"You could, but you shouldn´t be your tactless self. Use what Ferdinand von Aegir, the greatest noble on earth told you"

"You are too harsh on him, he is a nice boy"

"I know, but I felt like joking. I wish you luck. I don´t want to see your dear students in trouble"

Taking into account what Sothis had just said Byleth thought that apart from the tea he should prepare some sweets for her. "Even if she doesn´t want to talk about her problems if I can ease her tensions that would be enough to me" he thought.

He was planning asking for Lysithea´s help, who had continue to study with him and was showing impressive results, when he sensed a presence behind him.

"Good morning Professor, how are you doing?"

"Good morning Hubert, what do you want?"

"As efficient with your words as always Professor" he chuckled "Even though I wanted to be nice…"

"What happened?"

"I´m interested in you. I wonder why Lady Edelgard seems so interested in you"

"I trust her"

"Hearing that from you leaves me with a bad taste in the mouth. As you should know the most important thing to me is Lady Edelgard´s happiness. This requires me to analyze what contributes to her happiness and what could be considered a menace. I wouldn´t mind you if you contribute to Edelgard´s wellbeing. However, if you ever turn into a menace…I'll erase you"

"Are you menacing me?"

"It´s not a joke. Even if I am a student here I am first and foremost Lady Edelgard´s servant and I will judge you harsher than her for her own sake. Even if Lady Edelgard is interested in you I won't be careless in fulfilling my duty"

"I have nothing against her"

"Your words are full of confidence, I have to admit that" Hubert chuckled. "Even though I have menaced you, your face hasn´t changed a bit. I must acknowledge that you are an interesting specimen, Professor. You may not know this, but my family has been serving the emperor´s family for centuries. You could say that our duty to them is within our blood and I won´t forget my duties even if you pose a threat to her"

"As I said I have nothing against her. I respect your loyalty to her, but I can´t imagine causing her any harm."

"It frustrates me to be unable to reach beyond your expressionless surface, Professor. I will keep watching you" Hubert was preparing to leave when Byleth interrupted him.

"Hubert"

"Yes Professor?"

"I don´t want to harm you either"

"Is that a menace?" he asked.

"It isn´t. I wish to be in good terms with you too"

"Tsk" Hubert looked surprised and annoyed by Byleth´s answer and he promptly left.

"This one doesn´t like you" pointed out Sothis

"I know. He has been like that since the very beginning"

"I don´t think he would like to know about your meeting with the little Princess, you should be careful"

"I won´t back down for simple menaces. I don´t mean any harm to her too"

"Acting like that out of loyalty… Humans are really unique"

Leaving Sothis to her thoughts Byleth went to the library. He was searching for Lysithea and his guessing wasn´t in vain. The white haired student was focused on the lecture of a magic book, casting small spells as she was reading.

"Hello Lysithea"

"Hello Professor. Have you come to study too?"

"I wanted you to help me"

"Helping you? I don´t mind, but what can I do to help you?"

"I heard that you are good at making sweets"

Lysithea looked proud when he said that to her.

"Yes I am, I make my own sweets. I make sweets to rest between the lessons, besides everyone likes to eat sweets, right?"

"Of course" Byleth knew that Lysithea was especially sensitive regarding those things that would be considered childish and he wasn´t planning to offend her on that matter.

"I´m happy to hear that. If you can wait for a moment. I´m almost finishing this book"

"Don´t worry I can wait" he said sitting next to her.

After Lysithea was finished reading she accompanied her to the kitchen. The kitchens were usually occupied by members of the Church of Seiros, but a little area was reserved for the use of the students.

"What would you like to make?" asked him Lysithea

"I wanted to make some sweets to accompany a cup of tea"

"So you are inviting someone to tea? Can I ask who?"

"Edelgard"

"I see. She also likes sweets, although I have stronger tastes. I will help you. After all, you have been helping me a lot and I like her"

"Thank you"

"As I will be teaching you, you can call me Professor if you want."

Seeing her proud face, he couldn´t deny her that.

"Of course Professor Lysithea"

"That´s the spirit" smiled Lysithea. "Let´s start then"

Making sweets was harder than he expected, but after a few hours of trial and error Byleth achieved a result that Lysithea judged acceptable.

"It´s not the best I have eaten but it´s a good start in your sweet culinary career" Lysithea approved.

"Thank you Lysithea" he said patting her head.

"I´m not a child!" she said a little annoyed "But I will forgive you if you invite me someday" she said looking at her feet.

"Of course"

"It´s a promise then" she smiled. "Protect the sweets from the light of the sun. You don´t want them to get too dry"

"Understood"

"See you another day Professor" Lysithea said waving a hand to him.

He quickly returned to his room and put the sweets he had just made on the desk. With nothing much to do he spent the evening learning about a new spell called recycle.

…

**7/10**

Edelgard knew something had happened to Hubert when he made his morning daily report. He looked grumpy as if something was bothering him.

"Hubert, are you bothered by something?"

"Apologies Lady Edelgard, but it´s an insignificant matter that doesn´t require your attention. You don´t need to worry about me." He answered as he bowed.

Edelgard wasn´t convinced by the answer, but she didn´t find wise pressing him about that.

"Very well. I leave you with your duties"

"I will fully focus on them. You have nothing to worry"

She had promised to have tea with her Teacher at noon so she still had three hours left of time. She decided to do a lonely walk around the monastery. She enjoyed walking alone when she had time; it eased her tensions and helped her to concentrate better. She reflected about the last three months she had spent in the monastery. She had to admit that she was enjoying her life there, it could be said that it was the first time that she was having a normal life. "A normal, but incomplete life, but I can´t ask for more" she thought. Even if she was able to enjoy her days here every time she returned to her room the imperial princess would take her place. That was the reason why she appreciated to be treated as an equal, although only her Professor and Dorothea were the ones who didn´t remind her of her position.

Her walking brought her to the gardens. Some students were spending their time there and she could see Dorothea chatting with a man who appeared to be a knight of the Church. Edelgard was surprised by her ductility in anything related to relationships, but she didn´t dislike her for that. "She is enjoying her life the best way she can and I can´t really blame her for that. And contrary to Sylvain I don´t see her seducing every man in the monastery. ". She knew she could never enjoy something like that. She reluctantly knew that she would eventually have to marry for political reasons and that she couldn´t sacrifice the wellbeing of her citizens for her own. She sat under a tree and let the breeze caress her cheeks. As the scheduled time started to get close she looked around her in search of the teal haired man.

"Hello Edelgard" she heard a voice behind her.

Byleth was standing behind her with a tea set on his hands.

"You surprised me my Teacher. I was looking for you, but I didn´t spot you"

"Shall we take a place?" he said, offering his hand to help her.

"Thank you" she said accepting his. "Do you mind that table under the trees?"

"It´s ok to me"

Byleth carefully place the tea set he was holding on the table and silently started to prepare the tea. The concentration of his gaze on such a simple matter made her realize he wasn´t used to make tea, but she didn´t want to spoil his focus.

After patiently waiting for a few minutes Byleth served her a cup of tea with a familiar scent.

"Bergamot tea? How did you know it was my favourite?"

"Ferdinand told me about it. He had also taught me how to make tea and he gifted me with this tea set"

"I guess he can be nice from time to time. Have you tasted it before?"

"No" he took his cup and sipped a bit, closing his eyes "It´s ok"

"It may be a bit strong if it is your first time, but you may enjoy it later" she smiled

"Take this too" he said offering him handmade sweets.

"Thank you" she said picking one of them. It had a sweet taste, but it wasn´t too strong.

"Do you like them?"

"I do"

"I´m glad to hear that, Lysithea taught me how to make them"

Edelgard was surprised by the revelation. It was difficult to imagine a toughened warrior making some sweets with the little Lysithea. The mere image of that situation made her laugh.

"Forgive me my Teacher, I didn´t expect you to do something so sweet. I guess that you have some hidden qualities"

She was thankful for the consideration he had with her. They talked about different topics and Edelgard noticed he was choosing topics that he thought she may like. Seeing her Professor doing so much for her left her with a warmth feeling inside her.

"Can I ask you something Edelgard?"

"Of course"

"Is there something bothering you?"

"He had realized then" she thought. After her talk with Hubert she had been creating a bit of distance with her Professor, although she regretted it she knew that Hubert was suggesting that for her own sake.

"You see right through me Professor. I´m sorry to have made you feel worried"

"Was it Hubert?"

She was surprised when she heard that.

"Can you read another person´s mind Professor?"

"Not at all. Hubert has warned me about getting too close to you. He doesn´t want me to be a menace for your own good, but I don´t really blame him"

She felt a bit embarrassed about Hubert´s behavior, but Byleth didn´t look annoyed by that. She knew it would be unadvisable for her to hear her Professor´s answer to the threats but she wanted to ask him nevertheless.

"May I hear what did you answer to him?"

"I said that I don´t wish you any harm no matter what"

The power of his response left her speechless. Gently blushed, she looked at the bottom of her empty cup of tea.

"Your words are blunt, but I sincerely appreciate them. Forgive me for being distant due to such a ridiculous reason."

"No problem, I just want to make you happy. I want to make happy all of my students"

"I can say nothing about the others but I can assure you that I´m fortunate to have you as my mentor"

They continued chatting, the time passed faster than what she would have liked, but she couldn´t complain about it.

"Thank you for inviting me today. I have no problem to share another cup with you if the opportunity arises"

"I would like to" he said with a slight smile on his face.

When she looked at the time and saw that it was already past four she was surprised.

"The time has passed too quickly, but I enjoyed it. I wish you a good day"

After leaving her Professor he met with Hubert in front of her room.

"Has something happened Lady Edelgard? You seem brighter than usual"

"Who knows, it may be thanks to the good weather we have been enjoying these days." She said with a smile

Hubert nodded at her, although he didn´t really understand the reason of her smile.

"It won´t hurt me if I keep this little event to herself" she thought. When she reassumed her duties she did it with less pressure than usual and with a gentle smile on her face.


	15. The Holy Mausoleum

**7/17 Blue sea moon**

The days were passing with nothing remarkable to tell. Byleth noticed that Edelgard was more relaxed than usual and Hubert gave him scorned gazes every time their eyes met at class, but he didn´t mind that.

The vigilance of the monastery was increasing as the celebration was approaching. His father was also taking part in the guards and their interactions were reduced to the brief times they could chatter in the morning and the night.

"So much vigilance and nothing suspicious had been found. Are they really going to do something?" complained Sothis

"The purpose of patrolling is to avoid the apparition of problems. They may have given up in their objectives, whatever they are."

"It sounds like a waste of time though. You could use your free day to leave the monastery. I would like to go to the place where you went fishing before"

"Professor Byleth"

Byleth turned his gaze to the student that was calling from him. It was Felix, a member of the Blue Lions house, who was high skilled with his sword.

"Hello Felix. Do you want something from me?"

"I want to train with you. I think that fighting against strong rivals is the only way to improve my skills and I want to test your sword skills"

"I don´t mind fighting with you"

"And so it ends my free day" lamented Sothis.

Felix looked satisfied by Byleth´s response.

"Finally I have a chance to fight against you. Prepare yourself" he said unsheathing his iron sword.

Byleth did the same and so their combat began.

Felix was fast and he hit hard and Byleth was forced to take a defensive position. Block after block he tried to counterattack, but Felix stopped all of his attacks.

"You aren´t bad"

"That´s not enough until I defeat you" said Felix when his crest activated. A strange symbol appeared on his sword hand and the following hit was of an unprecedented strength. Byleth stopped the attack by the skin of his teeth, but he could feel the pain of his right arm. The crest activated again with the following attack. He had to end the combat quickly if he wanted to defeat him. He jumped backwards and charged to him. Felix did the same, but in the last second Byleth avoided his sword attack and hit Felix´s chest, cutting his breath.

"Ugh"

Felix had lost the positioning, but he was still standing, grinning to Byleth.

"I´m not done yet. I´m just getting started!" True to his word he continued to fight for the next 10 minutes, but the crest didn´t activate anymore and eventually was defeated by Byleth. "As Hanneman said, it is true that the activation of crests could be done with enough concentration and willpower, but it can´t be trusted to win a battle" Byleth thought.

"You did well" Byleth said offering his hand to help Felix, but he got up by his own.

"Your style of combat is completely different to the knights. My interest has just increased. I can´t wait to have a fight with you again"

"Me too. Fighting with someone is a way to discover them"

"I know that you brought Dimitri and Ashe with you in your last´s month mission. I would like to take part in a real battle alongside you"

Byleth looked at him directly in the eyes. "He has a decisive glare and he is strong. He may be a good asset in the battles to come" he thought

"I will consider it"

"That´s enough for me now, see you soon Professor" he said as he left.

"Enough for today wouldn´t you say? You have made a new friend"

"He is just a student"

"With your training obsession you are going to be good friends with him. Everyone is doing their best for their objectives and I´m happy to see that. However, what are you training for?"

"To protect my students"

"An honorable justification, but in a world with so different opinions and ideologies it would be difficult to protect everyone"

"If they all get along there won´t be any problems"

"As you said "if" they get along. You could say for certain that dawn will come after a long night, but you can´t completely predict how a person could react giving a set of circumstances"

"What do you want to say?"

"What I want to say is that humans are really difficult to understand. As a Professor and as a human being you want to protect them all, but you might have to choose one day"

"It won´t be an easy decision"

"Don´t worry too much about it, being inside your head allows too much free time and I end up thinking lots of things. Now that you have ended your training with that student please bring me outside. I want to feel the nature around me, even if it is through you"

He couldn´t deny such request and he also wanted to feel free for a moment.

"Of course Sothis, let´s go"

…..

**7/29**

Byleth summoned his class. After patrolling every imaginable place in the monastery he had suspicions about the objective of the plotters.

"Hello Professor. If our thoughts are the same I suspect that you have found out the most vulnerable spot of the monastery" Edelgard was accompanied by Hubert, who looked more serene than the last time he had spoken with him.

"The Holy Mausoleum"

Edelgard nodded at his response.

"I share the same suspicions. When we first patrolled the area it was only guarded by Alois and the upper levels were relatively easy to access. It is perfectly plausible to consider it the objective of the plotters."

"I´m glad that all this patrolling wasn´t in vain" grinned Hubert.

They waited for the rest of the students to come.

"I have summoned all of you here to explain you our objective during the ceremony"

"Have you discovered their objectives Professor?" asked Dorothea.

"It´s obvious Dorothea. They wrote that assassination plot of Rhea to make us think they didn´t plan to kill her, but in reality they are planning to kill her" Caspar said in a confident tone.

"That would be too dumb" yawned Linhardt

"We will be heading tonight to the Holy Mausoleum, since it is the most vulnerable place within the monastery and it is highly possible that it's the real objective of the plotters"

"You see Caspar? You were just an idiot. Professor´s explanation makes more sense" Pointed out Linhardt.

"At least I tried to contribute, not like you Linhardt"

"Calm down Caspar. Should we tell the Church about the findings?" asked Ferdinand.

"It would be inadvisable, since they may stop their plan if they know that we are after them. I want to catch the true responsible behind these two month´s events."

"I agree, patrolling it´s too boring" Linhardt pointed out.

"We have a few hours before the sun sets. We will meet at the cathedral, bring your equipment with you and don´t be late, that includes you Linhardt"

"Yes Professor"

Everyone left to prepare and Byleth did the same heading to his room. He was sharpening his sword with a whetstone when he heard a knock on his door.

"Come in"

It was his father, he was wearing his usual armor and he was holding a silver lance.

"Hello son, I see that you are preparing too"

"We will be protecting the monastery in case that something happens"

"Everyone is alert and prepared for battle. I wouldn´t mind if they come. Patrolling is too boring for me" he laughed. "I know that you are well prepared but just in case I wanted to give you this" he said giving him a pair of bottles. "It is holy water; it will raise your resistance against magic. I´ve never liked mages and their dirty tricks and I always bring a handful of them"

"Thank you father. I will share it too with my students"

"You have really grown fond of them." he smiled. "Seeing that side of you makes me feel happy. I will join the knights now, we will talk later"

"Good luck father"

Wavering his hand, his father left and Byleth reassumed his own preparations.

….

Byleth arrived to the cathedral and short after Edelgard and Hubert arrived.

"The rite of rebirth is about to begin, we will find out soon if our deductions were correct" commented Hubert.

"Hello Professor" Seteth approached him accompanied by Flayn. "I see that you have summoned your students too. We will be vulnerable since the rite begins. You have to protect the monastery while we attend the ceremony. We are relying on you"

"May I let you on in something Professor? My brother can be a bit callous. He told me that he was concerned about you, and hinted that, perhaps you would be better off patrolling a coffin" said Flayn with a mischievous smile on her face.

"That was just a joke Flayn. Please just remain by my side and don´t cause any more trouble" said Seteth, that looked like he was in a bit of trouble. "We will be heading to the ceremony good luck to all of you"

As they left Hubert was slightly chuckling.

"A coffin, sounds interesting"

When the rest of the students arrived, Byleth looked at them and explained their battle strategy.

"There is only an entrance so we will be cutting their retreat in case they are already there. We will use our usual battle formation. Edelgard, Ferdinand, Petra and Caspar in the front lines, Linhardt in the middle and Dorothea, Hubert and Bernadetta in the rearguard."

They started to descend the stairs that led to the Holy Mausoleum. After they passed the first floors, the stairs started to get narrower, only allowing them to continue in a single line. They were in complete silent and Byleth could hear Edelgard´s breath behind him. He could smell her scent coming from her too. After a few minutes they arrived to what appeared to be a giant crypt, but they weren´t the only ones there. A big group of soldiers and mages were already there, wearing what appeared to be the church´s uniform.

"How is this possible?" wondered Byleth, but his attention was immediately drawn by the dangerous aura emanating from a black knight, mounting an armored horse, wearing a giant scythe.

Noticing them, a mage that was in front of a tomb at the bottom of the mausoleum started to give orders to their troops.

"The central Church sends students to fight for them. Kill them like dogs for being the executioners of the central Church´s will"

"Our enemy appears to be searching Seiro´s remains. I don´t understand the reasons but we must stop them my Teacher"

Byleth analyzed the situation. There were three paths to the tomb where Seiro´s remains were located. The sides to the right and the left were more heavily guarded than the path through the center, but he sensed that the black knight in front of him wasn´t an ordinary enemy.

"We should avoid that one" Edelgard said looking at him. He looks too strong.

The enemies were preparing battle formations against them, but the mysterious knight didn´t seem interested in those commands. "Could it be that there is someone else interested in the tomb raid?" Byleth wondered. There wasn´t time to waste.

"Ferdinand, Caspar, Linhardt and Bernadetta to the left! Edelgard, Petra, Hubert and Dorothea to the right. I will take the middle"

"My teacher…" when Byleth looked at her he sensed fear in Edelgard´s eyes. It was the first time he had seen something like that.

"Don´t worry. Follow my command and we will meet at the other side" he reassured her.

One of the church members came rushing to him, but Byleth did a quick job of him, spilling the first blood.

The Tomb was quickly engulfed in battle cries and screams, although fortunately he couldn't hear any painful screams coming from his students.

As Byleth approached the knight he could sense an ominous aura emanating from him. His enemy was completely covered in armor, but the most unnerving feature was his helm. Two red orbs in a face with a metal smile. "The death itself" Byleth thought.

There were still a few meters of separation between them when Byleth heard his metallic voice.

"As moths to flame"

He charged at him, Byleth released a fire spell, but the Death Knight destroyed it with his scythe. He was already on him and Byleth was forced to jump to a side.

"Your death is inevitable. You should have chosen another path"

"If you are so sure about that come and kill me"

Hearing his response the Death Knight laughed, his laugh was distorted by the armor he was wearing, but Byleth felt a faint sense of familiarity. His enemy was preparing another charge. Byleth knew that he needed to dismount him if he wanted to have any chance of winning. "I´m sorry about what I´m going to do"

The Death Knight was already charging at him, his scythe emanating a dangerous light. Byleth ran at him and barely evading the scythe´s trajectory he cut one of the horses leg off.

Losing control of his mount, the Death Knight fell to the ground. The area was filled by the cries of the fallen beast, until he was brutally silenced by his former rider.

"Interesting, try to do the same to me" he said charging at Byleth.

With his sword Byleth stopped the hit that was aiming to his head. The scythe had an incredible reach and Byleth was unable to get closer to his enemy. Swing after swing Byleth was avoiding death itself. He knew that his silver sword was strong, but it wouldn´t resist for too long at this rate. Feigning an attack with his scythe the Dark Knight used thunder magic against him. The close distance made it impossible to avoid it. The discharge travelled around his body sending him flying to a column.

Byleth got up splitting blood. The Death Knight was quickly approaching him, the red orbs of his face completely focused on him. Byleth prepared himself. If he wanted an opportunity he had to use all of his strength. He closed his eyes.

"I won´t die today"

When he opened his eyes, he felt a familiar itching in his right hand. He had succeeded at activating his crest at his will.

The sword met the scythe with reinvigorated force, the impact between them sending red sparks.

The Death Knight was laughing.

"You are not holding back, this is what I was waiting for. Allow me to reciprocate"

Imbuing his scythe with the power of his thunder spell the dark scythe started to emit a cyan light. Red and blue sparks start to escape with each blow. No one of them was relenting, but both of them knew that it would probably end with the death of one of them.

…..

"Their soldiers are weak, they didn´t expect us" said Petra while she avoided a spell directed at her as she killed another archer.

"They are no rival to us" Edelgard smiled. Their forces were advancing on both sides, but the path of the middle was the witness of a brutal battle between Byleth and the Death Knight. Her heart almost stopped when she saw her teacher splitting blood, but despair turned into relieve when he saw him standing again against his foe.

"We must continue, the Professor is holding the biggest threat, we have to reciprocate"

"Of course Edie" Dorothea said while she released a powerful thunder spell.

"It would be bad manners if we didn´t" chuckled Hubert mercilessly killing an armored soldier with his magic.

Edelgard looked to her left. Ferdinand and the rest of his group were quickly advancing, sending his foes in disarray. "Only a bit more and this will end" she thought.

"Enemy reinforcements!" shouted Petra.

A group of enemies had appeared at the entrance of the room.

"We don´t have enough time to fight against them. Press forward!" she ordered

…..

Byleth was accumulating his energy in his sword that had started to glow red.

"Are you preparing a little ruse? It has no use your life will end here now, it´s your fate"

The Death Knight attacked with his scythe using a monstrous strength. Byleth stopped the hit but part of the lightning pierced through him. He was bleeding. Catching his breath he could sense the presence of enemies approaching them from the entrance.

"Reinforcements" he thought.

A swordsman was charging at him, but was sliced in half by the Death Knight.

"Don´t disturb us. He is mine"

Seeing an opening Byleth tried to thrust him, but the Death Knight quickly stopped his attack and counterattacked.

They were both reaching their limits.

"You are a tough nut to crack, but it´s time to end this. Accept your fate and die"

Their weapons kissed again, but this time a violent explosion happened. The scythe was sent flying and the sword shattered. The Death Knight lost his balanced and was kicked to the ground by Byleth. He unsheathed Edelgard´s dagger.

"I don´t believe in fate. I build my own path"

He quickly stabbed him in the junctures of the armor. The Death Knight´s armor was a solid defense, but the explosion had weakened parts of it. He tried to finish him with a stab to his chest, but he didn´t pierce his heart.

The Death Knight hit him with his helm in retaliation sending him to the ground.

"You are…interesting" he said, blood slowly dripping from the places where his armor was severely damaged. "We will meet again" he said while picking his scythe.

He tried to charge at him, but the Death Knight quickly disappeared in a purple cloud.

"Teleporting magic" he thought

"My Teacher, are you ok?"

Edelgard was approaching him, a worried look in his face.

"Don´t worry about me, keep pressing forward"

He suddenly felt a strange feeling of warmth around his body.

"You are making me work too hard today Professor" complained Linhardt.

"Thank you Linhardt" Byleth slightly smiled to him. "With me! One more push!"

The final defenses of the church forces were getting overwhelmed by the attack of Byleth and his students. In a matter of minutes the remaining enemy forces were dead or out of combat.

"Fools! It is too late. I have already broken the seal. Now I will take… a sword?"

The leader of the incursion was holding a sword that had an unusual design. The center of the base of the sword bore a circular hole, as if something had been taken from it. Before the mage could make use of it Byleth hit him and took it.

The moment his hand touched it the sword started to shine with such intensity that it looked as if the sun had descended to the mausoleum. The mage tried to use a dark spell against him, but Byleth destroyed it with a swing of his sword.

"Impossible" murmured his enemy.

…..

The light emanating from the sword was incredible. "The sword of the Creator has accepted my Teacher. How can it be?" Edelgard thought when she saw that the crest stone was missing.

The mage was desperately using magic against him, but it was a futile struggle.

"The sword of the King of Liberation, could it be that he…?" Edelgard was fascinated and scared at the same time, but she couldn´t stop watching the magnificence of the newly alive sword.

"Impossible" she could hear the mage murmur.

…

The mage was trying to create a magic barrier around him. Byleth pressed forward and use his newly acquired sword to break through the barrier. As cracks started to appear around the barrier, his enemy started to panic. When it finally broke he was effortlessly impaled by Byleth. When he separated his sword from the corpse the fresh blood on it quickly disappeared.

"It's thirsty" he thought. The brightness of the sword was enough to blind someone but it was extremely cold to the tact. "It is as if I were touching a corpse"

He looked to the tomb that the mage had opened, but it was empty.

His students started to approach him; Edelgard being the first of them.

"This sword, why is it here?"

"The tomb was empty. I don´t know either"

"Professor, you are holding a relic" Hubert said in a surprised tone.

"The sword of the creator" completed Edelgard

"Sword of the Creator?" he hadn´t heard about it, yet it felt familiar to him. "It´s a relic like Catherine´s Thunderbrand then"

"It is the weapon that wielded Nemesis until he was slain by Seiros in the war of heroes" said a completely awake Linhardt. "The sword between your hands is a complete legend"

"That happened 1000 years ago, yet here it is." Edelgard was watching him with a distinct aura to her usual self.

"Intruders! We have to stop them!" Catherine had just arrived with a group of soldiers when she saw the rests of the battlefield in front of her. When she saw the Professor and the students, she laughed. "You have been quite busy Professor; I thank you sincerely for protecting this place. Take the survivors and bring them to Lady Rhea. We will take care of the corpses later." When she was approaching Byleth she suddenly stopped. "The sword of the Creator, how could you? Bring the blade to Lady Rhea. We must inform her about this."

They left the Holy Mausoleum in complete silence, the swords glow had diminished, but Byleth could sense a strange power beneath its surface.

When they arrived to the to the audience room Rhea was protected by a group of elite knights that included his father. When he approached them the shock and disbelief in his father and Seteth´s face was evident, but Rhea looked strangely pleased.

"You have done a great job protecting the Holy Tomb Professor and it seems that the sword has recognized you as a worth user of its strength" she said looking at the glowing blade.

"I can´t believe my eyes" Seteth muttered.

"I beg you to give us the sword until we decide its future"

Byleth felt a strange feeling of repulse to returning the sword, but he handed it to Catherine. The moment it left its hand the sword lost all his brightness.

"Now bring the traitors"

A group of soldiers entered bringing the survivors of the battle. They wore the same clothes of their counterparts.

"The amount of crimes you have committed is unforgivable" Seteth declared with a serious expression on his face. "Inciting a rebellion, plotting against the archbishop and assaulting a holy place"

"Such amount of crimes cannot be ignored" continued Rhea. "Your very existence is corrupted. May death purify the souls of these sinners"

"We were tricked! This wasn´t supposed to happen!" cried someone of them.

"It doesn´t matter what you say, the crime is the same" Shamir said.

"I will pray for the purification of your souls. May your spirits meet with our creator"

"Such judgment couldn´t praise the Goddess at all!" cried one of the prisoners.

"Cursed Bitch **(see note)** , I beg you have killed a lot of our brethren with such corrupt methods"

"Brethren" thought Byleth "Is he implying that she isn´t human?"

"Bring them to their fate" Rhea simply declared.

As the church soldiers brought the prisoners to their execution place, Byleth looked at Edelgard, who was standing next to him. Her eyes were completely focused on Rhea´s figure, but he couldn´t decipher the emotions hiding under her eyes.

"Are you ok Edelgard?"

Edelgard was surprised as if she were lost in thought.

"Forgive me, I was thinking about the events that have brought us here. I would like to talk about it with you, but this is not the place"

They left the audience room accompanied by the rest of the students. Everyone was in complete silence. Byleth couldn´t blame them, since they have just witnessed the judgment from the archbishop. When they arrived to their classroom Caspar was the first to talk.

"Rhea is scary. She has just sent those guys to their death without blinking."

"If we offend her we can get ourselves killed too!" cried Bernadetta

"Professor, do you think that Rhea´s decision was correct?" asked a serious Dorothea.

"Even if they are guilty of their crimes they should have at least questioned them. I think that we don´t know all the truth"

"I agree with you" Edelgard said. "The execution of all the plotters without a second thinking just makes me feel suspicious about the central church proceedings"

"The central church doesn´t mind to crush dissidents when it falls to their convenience." Hubert chuckled. "We may be witnessing the end of the Western Church"

"Western Church?" asked Byleth.

"I forgot that you haven´t been in contact with the Church until now Professor. The Church is divided in various institutions, each one controlling a part of Fódlan."

"The West Church holds control of the west of Fódlan as its name says" Hubert continued Edelgard´s explanation. "Lord Lonato territories are located within it, but with the death of him and the plotters we may never know the reasons under their uprising and the assault to the Holy tomb"

"The central Church will surely destroy the rest of the western church. If they employ us we may be able to learn more about their hidden motives"

"For the time being we can just wait" Byleth declared. "You did a good job, all of you. You deserve a good rest. I will give you tomorrow as a free day. Make good use of it"

"One by one they started to leave the room, Hubert was waiting for Edelgard, but an exchange of looks made him leave without looking back.

"Professor, did you feel something strange the moment you touch the sword?"

"I sensed an incredible power beneath its surface, yet it was cold as ice to the contact."

"That light means that the sword has recognized you, but it doesn´t make sense. It seems that the legends of the past are returning to our present. By the way, I´m pleased to have heard your opinion about the Church´s methods. Executions without further investigations seems like a waste of resources to me."

"Me too. There are a lots of things that don´t make sense. The Death Knight was taking part in the raid, yet he did nothing to help the rest of the church members and even killed one of their reinforcements. I suspect that there are more people implied in all of this"

"It may be, but we can only make now suppositions. I´m glad that you have defeated it, but you shouldn´t risk your life like that"

"You don´t have to worry like that" he said patting her head "I thought it would be better if he fought against me than with the rest of you"

"Even in that case you should take more care of your life" said a slightly blushed Edelgard.

"Take a rest Edelgard. You did great today"

"You too Professor"

When Edelgard left Sothis voice came to his mind.

"You are right, there is something strange happening here and that sword… I saw how it absorbed the blood of the mage you killed. It has a tremendous power, but I can´t stop feeling that something sinister is hiding beneath its surface. Besides, it feels incomplete"

"You are right. There was an empty space at the base of the weapon and a lot of people were shocked by my ability wielding it. I should ask Hanneman about it"

"I have the same opinion, but you should wait until tomorrow. You have used a lot of energy during your last battle and even if they have used white magic to heal you, you shouldn´t abuse the strength of your body"

"I know"

When he entered his bed, he thought about the events that had happened during the night. He had the feeling that they were facing something bigger than it appeared to be. With that feeling hovering around him, Byleth fell to sleep exhausted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 女狐 means bitch in Japanese, but it is mostly used in cinematic settings or in novels. You could consider it an old way of being disrespectful against women. In the English version is changed to "monster" if I´m not mistaken and you also have the famous "dastards". I think that kind of changes don´t make much sense. A similar change happens in Edelgard´s support, but that one is justifiable, since it is a strictly Japanese element, with an historical base. I may use an approximation to the term that was used in the support or simply write an explanation here when the time comes.


	16. Black Clouds

**7/31 Blue sea moon**

Byleth opened his eyes when he heard someone knocking the door. When he opened the door he saw Cyril, the boy who assisted the archbishop in all kinds of works.

"Lady Rhea is waiting for you at the audience room. Don´t make her wait."

He quickly left after saying this.

"The little boy doesn´t like you" observed Sothis.

"I don´t know why, it may just be his personality"

"Anyway, you should hurry up. We may learn something about the events that happened yesterday"

He agreed with Sothis. After witnessing the events that unfolded yesterday he felt as if he was in the middle of a crossroad with not a clear path to follow.

When he opened the doors of the audience room he found Lady Rhea standing in the middle of the room. He was accompanied by Seteth and Catherine.

"Good morning Professor, I hope that you were able to recover most of your force"

"Thank you, I´m fine"

"I have summoned you here to explain you your next task. You will take your students into Kingdom territory to eliminate some thieves. They have stolen a Hero´s relic from House Gautier, the lance of ruin."

"You will recover the lance and bring it here" continued Seteth. "The leader´s name is Miklan, a disowned son of House Gautier."

"Fighting against the holder of a relic is not an easy task. I beg you to make use of the Sword of the Creator. You shall keep it with you until we have created a magic box capable of containing its power"

"I don´t agree with that judgment, but I will comply" said Seteth. "Make a good use of the weapon and don´t ever lose sight of it until we have developed an appropriate container of its strength."

"Understood"

"Catherine, give the sword to the Professor"

Catherine handed him the sword. The moment he touched it the sword emitted a faint glow.

"You should get used to your new weapon." said Rhea, with a smile on her face. "Catherine, could you train with the Professor for the time being?"

"It will be an honor Lady Rhea"

"Then don´t waste your time" said Seteth looking at him. "The sword may have accepted you, but that doesn´t mean that you can control it effectively"

"Understood"

He left with Catherine to the training room. His sword was lighter than its iron and silver counterparts, but it was cold to contact.

"As you will be using a relic I will be using my own" said Catherine unsheathing Thunderbrand. "I can´t wait to test the strength of the sword of the creator" she grinned.

Catherine charged at him. Byleth stopped her initial attack with his sword. Even though Catherine slashes were full of strength he had no problem to stop them. The sword was responding swiftly to his commands. He had the strange feeling that it wasn´t just a sword, but a part of his own body.

"Your sword is really strong, but how about this?" she said unleashing the power of Foudroyant, the secret combat art of her sword. The impact between the two weapons was brutal, but Byleth resisted the attack. "My sword may have a similar power within it" thought Byleth as he jumped backwards. He instinctively used his sword from the distance and it turned into a whip, which he used to grab Catherine´s sword.

"I didn´t expect something like that to happen" Catherine commented. Byleth´s sword had returned to its former self, even though a few moments before was used to attack from the distance. He handed back to Catherine her sword and they kept practicing.

When they finished practicing they were both exhausted. The sword of the Creator was really impressive, but Byleth had an uncomfortable feeling wielding it as if he were observed by something he couldn´t see.

"That was a blast of a training Professor" smiled Catherine. "I´m looking forward our next training"

"Me too"

After Catherine left him alone he headed to Hanneman´s room. He wanted to know more about the mysteries surrounding the sword and he had the hope that he had figured out Byleth´s crest.

"I was sure you will come, Professor Byleth. Come in!"

Hanneman offered him a seat and looked at him with a pleasant smile.

"You are surrounded by mysteries Professor. First your crest, and now the Sword of the Creator. Very interesting indeed"

"Have you discovered something?"

"Regarding your crest? Yes. I thought it would be impossible, that I was wrong with my hypothesis, but when I heard that the sword chose you…" He looked at him with a serious gaze on his face. "You have the crest of flames, long ago forgotten, believed to be extinct and the personal crest of Nemesis, king or murderer depending on the source"

"Nemesis…" A white bearded man appeared in his mind, alongside a green haired woman.

"The legends of the past are returning to the present. Could you lend me your hand?"

"I can do it on my own" he closed his eyes and soon after the crest appeared in front of him.

"Impressive. I didn´t know that you have learnt to make it appear at will. Is it related to the sword?"

"When I fought against the Death Knight I was able to use its power and shortly after I came in contact with the sword"

"That means that your force of will and not the sword are responsible of this success. I´m glad to hear that"

"What do you think about the sword?"

"The Sword of the Creator? I´ve been searching about it since last night, but the information provided cannot be completely trusted. According to the church, it was a gift from the Goddess to Nemesis, who was soon after corrupted by darkness. If we take into account the first historical documents related to the battle of the heroes it was used by Nemesis to slaughter countless enemies. A fearsome weapon which lost its strength the moment Nemesis was killed or so the legend says. And now I have in front of me a person who bears the very same crest"

"Does it mean that I am related to him?"

"That happened 1000 years ago and all the sources that I have consulted say nothing about Nemesis´s descendants. Such a powerful crest couldn´t have been ignored if he had descendants. A lots of things just don´t make sense. The sword lacks a crest stone, yet you can use it freely."

"A crest stone?"

"The relics have a crest stone that allows it to be used to its maximum power. Without it a relic would be nothing more than a normal weapon." As he explained that to him, he showed him drawings of different weapons that had a red sphere in them. "That sphere that you can see is the crest stone. To use a weapon to its max extent you would need not only a crest in the weapon, but you must be a holder of a crest that has an affinity with it. For example you could use Catherine´s Thunderbrand without a problem, but you couldn´t use its full strength unless you had a crest that has an affinity with the relic, usually the same crest that the relic holds."

"Then why I can use a crestless sword?"

"That´s the enigma that I have in front of my eyes. It is illogical to just say that is magic, since even magic has logical bases and limits. One element of the chain is missing. Do you feel something strange about the sword?"

"It feels cold when I touch it"

"Cold? Let me touch it."

"Hanneman examined the sword of the Creator, touching every single part of it. The sword was razor sharp and accidentally cut himself when he touched the blade"

"Ugh"

"Are you ok?" asked Byleth, but Hanneman was more fascinated by the blade and it didn´t appear to be hearing Byleth´s voice.

"The blood, it disappeared!"

"Is that common to other relics?"

"Not at all. Relics are like powerful version of standard weapons, but they don´t have this kind of power. I know that my request is strange, but could you drop some of your own blood on the blade?"

Byleth took Edelgard´s dagger and pinched one of his fingers. A blood drop fell on the sword, which emitted a faint glow the moment it came in contact with his own blood.

"It seems that it reacts differently depending on the person´s blood. It makes me feel uneasy. The use of blood is usually related to the darkest rituals within the dark magic. I would advice to use the sword as least as possible until we know more about it."

"I have to guard it until a magic recipient is prepared for its storage. I must carry it with me until they finish with the preparations"

"Don´t hesitate to come here if you find any anomaly. You are strong, but we don´t know yet exactly what you are holding and we can´t take unnecessary risks"

"I will take precautions. Thank you for your assistance Professor Hanneman"

"You can just call me Hanneman, I will do the same with you Byleth. And you can call Professor Manuela, simply Manuela; we are on the same boat, after all"

Byleth felt a small happiness hearing that.

"Thank you for your assistance Hanneman" he said as he left his room.

…

"Seiros´ remains weren´t found in the tomb" said Edelgard, covered in an intimidating armor, her voice distorted and metal sounding.

"It´s a pity. But I didn´t expect too much from the pigs of the Western Church" said a man with purple eyes and long dark brown hair.

She despised the sight of the man in front of him, but she had no other choice but to inform about her findings.

"The Sword of the Creator was found in the tomb of Seiros, but it lacked the crest stone"

"As one would expect. It would be too stupid to place such a weapon with its crest stone. I see nothing strange about that"

"Let me finish. Even though it lacked a crest stone, the new Professor was able to wield it"

"That´s impossible" the man in front of him was clearly surprised. "The weapon couldn´t be used if it were crestless and even if the crest were placed on it. That thief didn´t have any descendants. It would be impossible unless…"

"Thief?" Edelgard was annoyed by his response.

"I mean the King of Liberation. The fact that he can use such a powerful weapon means that we need to investigate more about him."

"I will investigate about him" she said "But I will tell you nothing that can harm him" she thought.

"Yes, you are in the best situation to share time with him. He could be a great asset to us if he were to help us, but we will probably need to get rid of it someday. After all, you are our weapon"

"You are wrong, a weapon has no will of its own, but I have one and you will pay for that" she thought but said nothing.

"I have nothing more to say to you. Continue as usual and keep an eye on that Professor of yours. Don´t waste our time and you will be rewarded accordingly"

He teleported, before she could say anything.

Every time Edelgard talked with him she had a sour taste in her mouth. She hated Tomas for what he had done, as he was the main responsible of the experimentations. However, she knew that the main threat was the creature she was forced to call uncle in public. He was the responsible of the rebellion of the seven, the coup that left his father without any power. Ferdinand´s father was corrupt and power hungry, but the real mastermind behind the tragedy of her family was him, Thales.

"I wish I could kill him with my own hands", she lamented, but with his death she would resolve nothing. She didn´t know the identities and locations of their kind, and she knew that to kill a hydra it was necessary not only to cut off its heads, but to destroy its filthy heart. It was an almost impossible task to do, since she could trust no one. She couldn´t know if she was surrounded by enemies since they could use other people´s appearances. "In this world only mistrust has helped me to survive."

She placed the flame emperor´s armor in a group of bushes next to her and started her return to the monastery.

She had left earlier in the morning and she was sure that the guards at the gates wouldn´t make strange questions to a student that was taking a walk around the monastery lands, but she had always to be cautious.

She had just arrived to the main entrance when she saw a familiar teal hair.

"Good morning Professor" she greeted him.

"Good morning Edelgard. I was just searching for you. I have something to show you. Could you accompany me?"

"Of course"

They entered an empty classroom, when Byleth made sure that no one was there, he extended his hand making appear his crest.

"Hanneman has completed its investigation. This is my crest, the crest of flames"

She had suspicions about the identity of her teacher´s crest since the events of Zanado. However, seeing it with her own eyes was a different story. She felt an itching in her hand, but she controlled the urge to make appear her own crest of flames.

"I wanted to show it to you since I promised that I would tell you if I discover anything related to my crest"

"I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I had suspicions about it when I saw you wielding the Sword of the Creator, but even now it is very difficult to believe."

"Hanneman is also intrigued by the sword. It lacks a crest stone, yet it reacts to my commands. He said that it didn´t make sense."

"I agree with him. I´ve never heard of a crestless weapon working, even if the bearer has a crest. The Sword of the Creator could be the exception to the rule, but we can just make conjectures about it. Our knowledge about it is nonexistent"

"I want to tell you something more, but only if you keep it a secret between us, even from Hubert"

Surprised by Byleth´s comment Edelgard couldn´t avoid feeling an intense curiosity.

"You have my word my Teacher. I´ll tell no one" and she was sincere about that.

He unsheathed the dagger that she had gifted him and pinched one of his fingers. When the drop of blood touched the inactive sword, it grew bright for a moment. When the sword turned inactive again, she noticed that there were no tracks of the blood that had touched the sword.

"The sword has absorbed your blood and it has reacted to it"

"It only reacts to my blood. Hanneman cut himself accidentally when he was examining the sword and its blood disappeared, but the sword remained inactive. Have you heard about something similar?"

"It is the first time I have heard about it. A crestless sword that reacts to the blood of its wielder. It sounds like a legend, but it is real. There is something unnatural about it." She felt that there was something unfitting about it.

"Hanneman has recommended me to use it as least as possible until we know more about it"

"I agree completely with Professor Hanneman´s advice. A sword that has been lost until now, we don´t know what could have happened to it." She was worried about his wellbeing.

"You don´t have to worry, Edelgard" he said as if he had read her mind "I will do as Hanneman says. They are preparing a box that can seal the sword when I´m not using it. Until then I have to protect it"

Hearing that made her feel irritated. Giving a sword with so many mysteries to her Professor without having a device to guard it was reckless at best.

"Even if such is the case you must be cautious. It would be regretful if something happened to you"

Hearing that, Byleth smiled to her. It was a short smile, but it was a sincere warmth smile.

"Thank you for worrying about me Edelgard. I will be careful"

Edelgard smiled to him.

"Thank you for telling me about what you know. We should leave the classroom. We don´t know if someone will come here"

They left the classroom behind them and returned to the main hall.

"I wanted to tell you too about our next assignment. We will have to travel to the north again. A group of thieves that is causing havoc has stolen a relic that belongs to House Gautier. Their leader´s name is Miklan, a member of the same family"

"A stolen relic. They can´t be an ordinary group of thieves if they have obtained a relic by force. You said that the relic belongs to House Gautier. That is the House of Sylvain, the troublesome student of the Blue Lions."

"That means that we may have to kill a member of his family. I have to tell him about our current task then"

"I appreciate your thoughts about it. If my knowledge is correct Sylvain is the second born of his family. Usually the first born is the one that inherits the House, but in this case the second born is the heir of the house. Do you suspect why he was chosen Professor?"

Byleth thought for a moment and then answered.

"Because he was born with a crest"

"That´s what I fear. I can tell you nothing about the reasons why he turned into a bandit, but I´m confident that the reason why Sylvain was chosen as heir of his house was that he was the holder of a crest. A world based on the existence of crests will only create additional inequalities to an already unequal world. I know that it´s just wishful thinking for now, but I will do my best to erase such problematic."

"I never knew about the existence of crests until I arrived here. If I had lived for twenty years without knowing about them that means that they are not truly necessary for this world to function"

Hearing such honest opinion made her feel a warmth sensation in her chest.

"I´m glad to hear such an honest reasoning my Teacher. If you were the majority of people I know the world would be a better place to live" she sighed. "What are you going to do?"

"Now? I think I must find Sylvain. He deserves to know that our next task objective is his brother. And you Edelgard?"

"I have particularly nothing to do, since you gave us a free day. I could accompany you if I´m not a burden to you"

"You have never been a burden. Then come with me and let´s search for Sylvain"

They found Sylvain talking with Felix in the Blue Lions classroom. Looking to the face of Felix, Edelgard though they were arguing about something but they quickly went silent when they noticed her and her Teacher approaching.

"Hello Professor Byleth. I see that you are well accompanied" commented Sylvain, looking at her, though his smile froze the moment he was scowled by Edelgard. "Apologies, I didn´t mean to disrespect"

"I was searching for you Sylvain. Our next task is to eliminate a group of bandits that is causing problems in the north. Their leader´s name is Miklan"

"My brother, I knew that that idiot would cause problems the moment he was expelled from our house." He sighed. "I have received a letter from my father talking about that matter; he says he had robbed the lance of ruin, the relic of our family. I know that it´s going to be troublesome, but I would like to accompany you. No need to be soft with me Professor, if my brother must be killed, he deserves it" he sighed again.

"I don´t have any problem to accept your request, you will be coming with us then. You will be training with us from tomorrow. Be punctual."

"In that case I want to take part in it too" said Felix. As I told you before I want to experience a real battle alongside you. You won´t be disappointed" he grinned.

"Then it is done. Both of you will train for the following month alongside the rest of the Black Eagle´s students. Don´t be late. I won´t be indulgent with you, even if you aren´t students from my own house"

"Why would I be late to an opportunity to train?" laughed Felix. "My sword is always ready"

"Don´t worry about me Professor, I will go too, but first I have to arrange a date I have" Sylvain winked to Byleth, recovering his usual façade.

"I too have matters to take care of" said Felix, excusing himself.

They were again alone, although it was strange to be alone in the classroom of a different class.

"I think that for our next task we will be using battalions. We will start practicing positioning and combats in real battle simulations"

"You are right, we may need every help we can find. That a group of thieves could acquire a relic weapon proves that they are a dangerous foe."

"I will be talking to the different groups in the monastery and the township. You are free to leave. See you tomorrow Edelgard"

"See you tomorrow Professor"

Her eyes followed his back until she lost sight of him. "He bears the same crest of me, then" she thought. She was in part relieved to know another person who was holding such burden, but she was also intrigued about the origin of her professor crest. "He has never mentioned something strange about his uprising, but his lack of emotions and lack of knowledge of the world surrounding him was suspicious to her. Due to the experimentations she had suffered, she had scars around her body. Most of them had disappeared with the use of magic, but one was perfectly visible in her chest, the place where she was cut open and applied different substances that she didn´t want to remember again. "If he had endured something similar he may have the same marks in his body, but asking to see that would be…troublesome" she felt a bit of warmth in her cheeks as she thought that. "I shouldn´t be thinking about something like that"

She left the room, a part of her thinking about her Professor and the other about the Sword of the Creator.

….

It was already late when Byleth returned to his room. Members of the church of Seiros and mercenaries he had found at the town will join forces with him and his students for the following month.

He had nothing much to do and he was feeling unusually exhausted, so he decided to immediately go to sleep.

….

"Your highness, the city is ours"

Byleth smiled hearing how his soldiers were naming him. He was sitting at an immense throne made of stone.

"Good job. They were completely surprised by our attack; they never suspected they would be attacked at their own capital"

It was a risky maneuver, but thanks to the help of his new allies they were able to enter the city under the protection of the night.

"Extract as many crest stones as you can, our allies have required a part of it as repayment for their services. The rest will be for us."

"Understood your Highness"

After he left Byleth got up and started walking around the throne room, the sun already setting. The city was full of unimaginable treasures and he felt an incredible energy within him.

"It was truth what they told me. The power of a God lives within me" he said extending his hand, making a crimson mark appearing in front of him. "A price worth it, after killing just one little girl". The same day he acquired his new powers after killing the girl he was urged by his allies to take the city. He was at first doubtful about the possibilities of victory, but he wasn´t disappointed by the result.

He was standing next to a column. He could see his face, the face of an old man with hair long ago turned white.

When Byleth opened his eyes he was covered in sweat, next to him the sword was shining, casting shadows to the wall.

"Was it a dream or was it real? There were still two hours until dawn, but he didn't sleep again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the final part of the chapter we see the dream through the point of view of Byleth, but in reality is Nemesis as you can see. I explain it here to avoid unnecessary confusion.


	17. Between reality and illusions

**8/1 Verdant rain Moon**

Edelgard opened her eyes to the sound of the rain. Fódlan had just entered the rainy season and she knew it was the first of the many rainy days that were going to follow. "And in the north is going to be worse"

It was too early yet, but Edelgard changed to her uniform and left her room. The aisles were completely deserted, only the sound of the rain falling could be heard. It was at moments like these that she could feel at ease. Walking without aim she arrived to her classroom. When she opened the doors she was surprised to see him there.

He was looking the rain through a window and he didn´t appear to have noticed her. Remaining silent, she watched him, feeling a strange feeling of tranquility just by looking at him. However, those feelings clouded the moment she saw the Sword of the Creator shining next to him.

"Do you like this kind of weather Edelgard?"

She was surprised by his question.

"Did you know I was here all this time, my Teacher?"

"I knew, but you said nothing so I decided to remain silent."

"Why are you here so early?"

"The same I could say about you. I just had a nightmare, nothing to worry about"

"You have nightmares too" The mere thought of it was strangely comfortable. "You always seem to be under control, but the fact that you can suffer nightmares too feels reassuring. Forgive me if it sounds strange."

"You have nothing to feel sorry about."

When he turned his head to her she saw his usual serene gaze, but his lips were curved in a light smile.

"I know that my expressions are lacking, but that doesn´t mean that I´m a statue. In fact, I´m starting to feel some change within me and you and the rest of the students are the reason for it"

It didn´t matter how many times she had spent talking with him, his honesty was an unexpected yet comfortable light to the world she was used to.

"I´m glad to hear that coming from you. I must admit that you too are of great importance to me"

"I wish you could walk alongside me in my path" she thought. She trusted him, but being raised in a world where treason was under smiles had made her heart of ice, yet that was also starting to change. "The emperor inside me wants to be cautious about you, my Teacher, but I would like that you reached for my hand by your own will"

"Has something happened to you Edelgard? You have grown silent"

"I´m sorry, it must be the weather. The rain makes me think about lots of things, but you don´t need to worry about that"

"The burdens of your path?"

She looked at him.

"I know that despite your age you are the bearer of too much burdens" he continued. "But I don´t want these burdens to crush you. You are strong, but even the strongest can fail when they are left alone. As my father would say a mercenary is only worth the value of his group."

"I really appreciate your words my Teacher, but why would you choose to help me? A lot of students here need your help and so many others are carrying their burdens without any help. Why would it be different for me?"

Byleth grew silent for a moment, his eyes never leaving hers.

"I guess that I´ve grown fond of you…and a part of you is similar to me.

Edelgard was left speechless by her Teacher´s words, a torrent of emotions trying to leave her mouth and a strange warmth feeling appearing inside her heart.

"I´m sorry if I said something strange. I want to protect all of my students but I feel that I can help you the most. I may not be a good Professor after all"

Edelgard couldn´t avoid giggling at her Teacher´s reaction. "Don´t worry my Teacher, I will keep this conversation a secret between us"

"And thank you. Even if the emperor trusts no one Edelgard will. Your honesty won´t be in vain" she thought. "Hubert sees me as the future emperor, the murderers of my family as a simply tool that can be used to fulfill their objectives, but you are the one to treat me as simply Edelgard, without paying attention to my status"

She wished to stay at ease for a bit longer, but she could already hear the footsteps of her classmates.

"I guess that the class is about to start"

"I guess so"

Byleth returned to his desk and Edelgard sat in her usual place.

"Good morning Professor!"

"Good morning, in days like this it would be better to stay in bed"

"What are you saying Linhardt? You would be skipping the whole month if you did!"

"Days like this make you appreciate the good weather; don´t you think Professor?" asked Dorothea.

"I don´t mind rainy days"

"I thought you would say something like that" she smiled

"In days like these I don´t want to leave my room"

"What are you saying Bernie? The Professor would be sad if you skipped the class"

"Really Professor?"

"Of course"

"Then it cannot be helped." Bernadetta said with a smile on her face.

"Fódlan weather is too cold, too different"

The last ones to arrive were Ferdinand and Hubert

"Excuse me Professor; Ferdinand has been trying to persuade me about his superiority to Edelgard and I´m afraid that his chatter has made us arrive late"

"You are only telling half the truth Hubert. I was just telling you that in order to be a good ruler Edelgard had to have someone to compete with and I would be the most suitable in that case"

Felix and Sylvain arrived just in time and took seats at the bottom of the classroom.

"Don´t be surprised. They will be assisting us in our next task"

"A new task with this weather? How bothersome"

Edelgard had got used to the endless chatter of her classmates. "This must be how a normal life feels" she thought, smiling to herself.

…..

"Our current month task will be the eradication of a group of bandits in the Holy Kingdom; they have stolen the relic of House Gautier. We will count with the help of Felix and Sylvain, which will train with us for this month. I hope that all of you can get along with them. For this quest we will be using battalions, you will put into practice your knowledge and commanding skills. I hope for the best"

"Where are we going to practice with such a group?" asked Dorothea

"We will practice outside"

"It´s raining Professor" complained Linhardt. "Do you want us to catch a cold?"

"I believe that fighting in unfavorable conditions would be useful for the future. You don´t know when you will be facing your enemy"

"The enemies I would like to face are just books, but protesting against this would be too troublesome"

"Prepare your equipment. We will met in 15 minutes at the gates of the monastery"

Everyone started to leave the class. Byleth was already prepared so he didn´t have too much to do. He headed to the Pegasus stables.

"How are you feeling?"

"I´m fine, it was just a nightmare"

"I highly doubt so. It wasn´t a normal dream. You may be having visions" pointed out Sothis

"Visions of a past long ago forgotten. If that´s right I need to know more"

"Do you intend to keep having these dreams?"

"If it´s necessary yes. I have the feeling that something important is hiding just within my reach. I intend to learn about it"

"You have heard the old Professor´s advice. We don´t know the true nature of this sword. Besides, how do you know if what you saw was real or just an illusion?"

"For years I had the same dream of a big battle. In Zanado I had a vision of the destruction of an ancient city and last night I was Nemesis. I need to know for the sake of everyone and for my own."

"Ok, but don´t do something stupid, we are together in this"

"Don´t worry Sothis"

He had just arrived to the stables. His usual mount came to greet him accompanied by Edelgard´s.

He caressed the Pegasus neck and rode it, carrying the reins of Edelgard´s. He also considered bringing a Pegasus to Petra, but the current weather would do more bad than good to Petra if she kept flying during a session.

"You are going to make everyone catch a cold, don´t you think?"

"I won´t be too harsh on them"

He flew with his Pegasus to the gates of the monastery, closely followed by the second Pegasus.

Most students were already there, some of them surprised by the Professor´s sudden arrival. The battalions were already waiting.

"Let´s head to the plain next to the township"

He gave Edelgard the reins of the other Pegasus. "Edelgard you can ride if you want" He then looked at Petra "I haven´t forgotten about you Petra, I just thought this weather would be inappropriate for you"

"Don´t worry Professor, you know that I don´t like the cold" she smiled to him.

"March!" shouted Byleth, as he returned to the skies. He was accompanied by Edelgard, who had improved a lot her flying capabilities.

They quickly arrived to the plain so they waited for the rest of the group to appear.

"The world is really small if you see it from the heights" commented Edelgard

"I agree, but there are still places unknown waiting to be found"

"Did you enjoy your travels around the world Professor?"

"They were for work, but I must admit I did"

"I would like to hear soon more about your travels"

"Of course Edelgard, I have no problem telling you"

She gave him a gentle smile as a response.

The rest of the students and battalions were arriving.

"Edelgard, return to your battalion"

"Understood Professor"

They flew lower until they were at the same level than the rest.

"We will have a mock battle, between two teams. The first team will consist of Edelgard, Hubert, Bernadetta, Sylvain and Dorothea. The other team members will be Ferdinand, Felix, Caspar, Linhardt and Petra. Edelgard and Ferdinand will act as the commanders. I will be an enemy to both teams. The last team remaining will be the winner"

"The battle I´ve been waiting for" smiled Ferdinand. "I´m sure that I will lead our team to victory"

"To achieve victory you have to fight for it first Ferdinand. Let´s see how the events unfold" said Edelgard.

"5 minutes for preparation" Byleth said. He then flew to the clouds. He didn´t want to spoil the two teams' preparations. When the time passed, Byleth released a fire spell into the sky, marking the beginning of the battle.

Byleth flew into the battlefield. The moment he abandoned the cover of the clouds he saw a front line already established between both teams. Ferdinand was trying a spear formation with his horses, but he was facing Sylvain´s mercenary's opposition. Linhardt and Dorothea were boosting their team's offensive capabilities and Hubert was trying to hit Caspar with his spells. An arrow coming from his right made him realized he was targeted by Bernadetta´s group. He made evasive maneuvers and approached the group of archers when a red shadow came from his left. The impact of Edelgard´s axe almost made him lost the control of his Pegasus, but he was able to stabilize. He reciprocated with a fire spell, which used as a distraction to gain height. He was being chased by her. Taking a glimpse of the battlefield, he could see that she had distributed her own battalion between her different team members. "That means her objective is neutralizing me without losing or neglecting the ground battle. Interesting" he thought.

He changed his direction to face her. His sword clashed with her axe. They were flying in circles trying to knock the other down.

"I didn´t expect enjoying the skies so much Professor"

"It´s quite the experience but you will have to defeat me to claim victory"

"I won´t back down. Bernadetta fire at will!"

A group of arrows came from the ground, impacting both of the Pegasus; they were blunted but the subsequent panicking made Byleth almost lose control of his Pegasus.

"The little Princess has courage, but I don´t want you to break your bones if you fall" said Sothis.

He was surprised by the attack, but he didn´t have time to answer her. Edelgard was trying to shoot him down, while down there a new barrage of arrows was approaching.

"If she is taking risks I will do the same"

He led his Pegasus to approach Edelgard´s Pegasus. When both creatures impacted he jumped behind her.

"My Teacher?!"

Edelgard was surprised by Byleth´s counterattack. She tried to attack him with her axe but her current positioning was disadvantageous to her. Byleth was trying to disarm her while he was trying to take control of her Pegasus when a new barrage of arrows arrived. Holding the reins with only one hand Edelgard was incapable of taking control of her mount, which was flying lower and lower, the ground dangerously close to them. Anticipating the crash Byleth dropped his weapon, embraced Edelgard and jumped to the ground. The grass softened the impact, but Byleth suffered a severe pain in his back, the first part of his body that touched the grass and his chest, with the friction of Edelgard´s armor.

"Are you ok Edelgard?"

"Yes my Teacher, but this is a bit…"

He realized he was still embracing her, her head on his chest. He released her, her ears and cheeks redder than her own armor.

"You did well I didn´t expect such strategy."

"More than a strategy was a bet. You didn´t need to do that" her eyes avoiding him while she was playing with her hair.

"Improvisation is an important part of the battle, but I must admit that what I did was too risky" he said while applying magic to ease his pain and he then applied the same healing to the crashed Pegasus, which was slightly injured.

"No matter how much I train you seen to be a step ahead of me"

"That´s not true Edelgard. I´m gladly surprised by your improvements. We are both out of combat so you can consider it a draw"

He mounted Edelgard´s Pegasus, offering to her his hand. "Come with me Edelgard, we must see how the battle develops"

She mounted behind him, her hands firmly surrounding his waist. He felt a strange pain in his heart, but he thought it wasn´t related to his injuries.

They returned to the skies, where they had a panoramic of the battle below them. Felix and Ferdinand were facing Sylvain and Hubert. His students looked exhausted and covered in mud and there were some injured between the members of their squadrons, but nothing life threatening.

Ferdinand noticed Byleth reappearance.

"Professor, have you come to take part in the final battle?"

"I´m out of combat"

"As I am. Hubert, Sylvain lead our team to victory!"

Most of the students were surprised by that.

"Even the Professor can be defeated in battle. I wish I could have seen that" commented Dorothea.

"What I want to see is a hot bath. I´m covered in mud" lamented Linhardt.

"If Lady Edelgard has made so much for our victory I cannot do less. Farewell, Ferdinand" Hubert said while releasing a powerful spell.

"If you say it like that, you sound like you intend to kill me" Ferdinand answered avoiding the spell. "I will do my best to achieve victory too!" he said while charging at him.

"Felix, you always describe Dimitri as a boar, but seeing you covered in mud makes me think of a real life boar."

"Covered in mud or not your chatting won´t save you from my sword"

"You were sweeter when you were younger" Sylvain sighed. "Let´s end this quick, a hot bath awaits me"

Both teams clashed at the same time. Hubert was able to knock down Ferdinand and Felix did the same to Sylvain.

Felix then started a charge against Hubert. A battle between a mage and a swordsman was heavily in favor of the later one, but Hubert was accumulating magic in his hands. When Felix was on him he released it the explosion sending both rivals to the ground.

"Defeat, my training wasn´t enough" said Felix

"I´m afraid I can claim this as a victory Lady Edelgard" said Hubert, incapable of getting up.

"Good job everyone!" shouted Byleth "I´m proud of all of you, even if it is a triple draw. Linhardt, heal Hubert. Get some rest tomorrow, you have earned it!"

Byleth made a round thanking the members of the church and the mercenaries he had deployed, healing those who were injured.

When everyone started to head back to the monastery he looked at Edelgard

"Should we return to the monastery or do you want to go with your classmates?"

"If it is you I don´t mind returning with you my Teacher, aren´t you worried about your Pegasus?"

"I´m sure it has already returned to the stables, they are tamed so I´m not afraid of losing it into the wild"

They landed next to the stables where Byleth´s Pegasus ran to greet them.

"I told you, it had returned" Byleth said caressing the animal as an apology for the battle.

Byleth got off the Pegasus and offered his hand to help Edelgard. The moment he touched her he felt something strange.

"Your glove is missing"

Edelgard had just realized it, her cheeks getting red.

"You don´t need to comment on every little detail my Teacher"

"You always wear gloves so it just caught my attention seeing your bare hand"

"If you say it like that you make me feel as if my hands were strange"

"Quite the contrary, I like it"

Hearing that, Edelgard´s ears turned red too.

"I gladly receive your compliment" she said toying again with her hair "I will be going ahead. See you tomorrow"

Byleth looked at her back as she was walking to the monastery. He was glad that Sothis was napping inside his head; if she were awake, he felt that he may be yelling at him now.

…..

After taking a hot bath and going to the greenhouse, Byleth returned to his room. He started to prepare a drink.

"What are you preparing?" asked Sothis

"A somniferous drink"

"So you intend to fall asleep as soon as possible to find out if your theory is true?"

"Yes"

"I don´t know if you are brave or masochistic"

Byleth drank the drink he had just made. Placing the Sword of the Creator next to him he awaited until a feel of dizziness invaded his body.

…..

"You are telling me that you want me to fight against Nemesis"

"Yes, that´s right" Byleth said.

The man who stood before him was a middle age man with brown hair and a brown beard, but his most striking feature were his purple eyes, which looked at Byleth with suspicion.

"Nemesis is a strong foe; questioning his power will mean the death of us all"

"Yet you have granted me an audience Wilhelm. If you were so sure about your response you wouldn´t have done it"

The man called Wilhelm smirked to Byleth´s response

"It would have been unwise to ignore Lady Seiro´s request. After all, your power is quite remarkable."

"Wise words I dare to say"

"What would I gain if I join your cause?"

"Your heart´s inner desire, the unification of Fódlan"

Hearing that, Wilhem looked at Byleth with renewed interest.

"I must admit that the unification of Fódlan is the objective of my lifetime, my lands are prosperous but only as the ruler of the whole continent the future of House Hresvelg will be assured. A glorious task I dare to say, but against Nemesi´s might it would be suicidal to send my troops to the north"

"You shall not be alone; I will help you with all my might. I have on my side the survivors of that hideous creature."

"A father and a daughter and two more warriors. I know that your brethren is strong, but I´m afraid it wouldn´t be enough"

Byleth knew that the man in front of him was ambitious. "Humans only wish for wealth and power and they are easily corrupted. If lending my strength to this man allows me to have my revenge, then shall be it." Byleth thought

"I´ll gift you my strength. A strength worthy of a god." As he said it, Byleth showed him a cup filled with a strange green liquid. "If you drink it you will earn the power of my crest and your descendants may receive it too. With that power your dynasty will be secured and you will turn into an asset in our fight against Nemesis"

Wilhem was really pleased to hear that, his eyes full of a ruthless ambition.

"Such power would surely allow my dynasty to rule over the ages. I will gladly accept the cup you offer me"

He took the cup with his hands and drank its content.

"Not my favorite taste, but its bearable. When will I see the effects?"

"It will take some time to manifest but it will not take too long"

"Excellent news. For now we should cooperate in secret. Quarrels between lords are frequent in this land, but it would be suspicious if you were to appear in front of my troops"

"What plans do you have for your upcoming campaign?"

"The lands in the south of this land are rich in food. They also have rivers that can ease the transport of troops and food at greater lengths. If we take these positions first we will gain the control of the population too. These lands are usually assaulted by groups of bandits. If we can offer them a better protection than their current one, we could duplicate the amount of troops we can deploy in battle without taking into account forced conscription"

"What do you want me to do?"

"You and your kin will take the mountainous areas in the north of my lands. They are relatively poor and are usually ravaged by great beasts, but the folk living there is tenacious. They only believe in strength. Make disappear the beasts that are menacing their livings and you will earn their trust."

"Understood Wilhem. I hope that your loyalty will definitely stay on our side now"

Wilhem grinned to her.

"It will. I have great dreams for my House and if you are the one to provide me the necessary help to achieve my objectives I will gladly fight for your cause."

"I will inform the others about the results of our negotiations"

"Do as you please" Wilhem dismissed her. "But don´t leave my territories and keep hidden, if possible, the color of your hair. My soldiers are loyal to me, but we don´t know if there are spies around here"

Byleth left the room with a sour taste in his mouth. "Wilhem is arrogant, but he will stick to us. His arrogance binds him to our path"

Outside the room there were waiting two of the four survivors of the massacre.

"Where are Cethleann and Cichol?"

"They are outside fishing at a stream" said Macuil with an annoyed expression on his face.

"Let them be Macuil, Cethleann is just a girl and Cichol is just worried about her wellbeing" said Indech.

"The time of rest can wait. We are here for revenge. Don´t you think Seiros?"

"I agree"

"I would prefer to avoid joining forces with humans, but we cannot waste our limited resources" said Macuil. "Did he agree to help us?"

"He will join us, his ambitions exceed his cautions"

"As expected of humans" said Macuil in a disdainful tone.

"What will we do Seiros?" asked Indech. Despite the events of the tragedy, Indech´s personality had remained almost the same, being his usual timid self, Byleth couldn´t avoid smiling to him.

"We will head north to exterminate a group of monster that is causing havoc. He says that, if we help the humans living there they will join us. He will lead his forces to the south. He wants to control the rivers and fertile lands to the south."

"Understood Seiros, with their help our route to vengeance will be a step closer"

"Nemesis is not the only one we need to eradicate. I´m sure that those filthy creatures are behind the tragedy that unfolded in our home. The Argarthans must be exterminated. Their blood shall not spoil this land anymore. If we succeed we will have an everlasting peace. For those who died and for our mother, we must succeed"

"You are right Seiros, we will never rest until every last one of them drowns in their own blood."

"If that´s the path you choose I will continue to the bitter end" said Indech.

Byleth exhaled a deep breath, his eyes focused on the horizon. "I will prevail mother and I will recover you, no matter the price"

…..

When Byleth opened his eyes it was still dark. His blood felt like if it were boiling, the sword next to him emitting a faint glow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing to report Professor, you should get some sleep!


	18. The price of knowledge

**8/2 Verdant rain Moon (early morning)**

"Where are you going? There are several hours left until dawn" asked Sothis

"To the library"

"I don´t think you will find something of interest there. Besides, you are still weak after what you have just seen"

"Not to that section, I plan to get into the church reserved area."

"You mean to trespass a restricted area. It could end badly for you"

"I have the feeling that I can find something related to these visions I´m having"

"Be careful and don´t get caught."

Byleth sheathed the Sword of the Creator and left his room. The world around him was completely empty, only a few torches could be seen at the walls in the distance. Walking without making any sound Byleth crossed the gardens and headed to the main building. The gates of the building were closed with iron bars and he could see in the distance a patrol approaching.

"What now?"

Byleth unsheathed the Sword of the Creator and using it as a whip aimed to the cornice of the building and then propelled himself, as the Sword of the Creator started to return to its original form. With that maneuver he was able to climb twenty meters.

"I haven´t thought of using your weapon like that. Be careful not to fall to your death now."

He sheathed the sword again as the patrol walked under him. He didn´t want to risk getting exposed so he decided to make his way climbing. Even if the building was well conserved, centuries of rains and blizzards had altered the form of some rocks, making the climbing easier.

He climbed for a while until he arrived to the lower level of the library, its windows having a Seiro´s crest based decoration. He sat for a moment to catch his breath, his legs with no floor under them.

"More than a mercenary you could have been a thief"

"I won´t steal anything. I just want to investigate about what I´ve been seeing"

Before Sothis answered Byleth started to climb again. The windows of the restricted area of the library were smaller than their public counterparts. Byleth touched the surface of each window until he touched one that was badly closed. Opening it carefully to avoid falling to his death, Byleth entered the restricted area of the library.

The room Byleth had just entered was completely dark. He casted a small flame and wandered between the shelves. He spent a couple of hours there searching for the Argarthans or the War of the Heroes, but he found nothing about the firsts and only slightly variations about the second.

"It´s time to give up, if not even high ranked officials have access to the information you are searching for it must be well hidden. Perhaps, the dreams you are having are just that"

"You may be right" said Byleth, his voice filled with disappointment, but he had the feeling they were real somehow.

He climbed to the window again and started the return to the ground. When he was at the middle of it, it started to rain.

"Talking about bad timing"

He tried to continue, but the rocks he was using as points of balance were getting slippery. He looked to his right and noticed an aisle that lead to the students' dormitories. He unsheathed the Sword of the Creator with the only hand he had free and used it as a whip again. When the Sword of the Creator dived in the wall of the aisle, he propelled himself and jumped. The landing wasn´t perfect and he suffered light contusions in his legs and arms, but it could have been worse.

Getting up again he walked across the aisle trying to find the stairs when he heard a young woman´s voice.

"What was that?" asked Sothis

"It came from one of the student´s rooms."

He approached the source of the sound and he identified the woman´s voice. "Edelgard" he thought. Without a second thought he entered her student´s room.

Edelgard was covered in the sheets of her bed, talking in dreams. By the look of her face he knew she was having a nightmare. He gently placed his left hand on her forehead to check if she was having a fever. Raindrops were falling from his head to hers and she finally opened her lilac eyes.

"I´ve just had… My Teacher?! What are you doing here?! Is this still a dream?"

Byleth really didn´t know how to answer, and telling the truth would be too strange when a word he had overheard came to his mind.

"Night crawling" **(see note)**

"Night crawling?!" said Edelgard, her cheeks getting red. "Do you understand what you are proposing my Teacher?"

"Sorry, I didn´t mean it" apologized Byleth when he realized what he was really saying.

"You shouldn´t joke about something like that." Said Edelgard, still blushed. "You are completely wet. Were you walking outside?"

"Yes"

"You are a strange person, my Teacher, but you should avoid entering a student´s bedroom. It may lead to a misunderstanding" she said while she was toying with her hair.

"You were screaming in dreams"

"Ah so you heard me then. Yes, it was a nightmare. I´ve had them since I was a child. Stupid, pointless dreams I can´t control. It´s terribly frustrating."

"What are they about?"

"Just my childhood. A time before I had realized who I was destined to become"

"You can trust me with anything, if you wish to"

Edelgard gave him a light smile.

"I thought you would say something like that. I guess I could try, but only if you swear not to tell a soul. "

"I will tell no one"

Nodding at his response Edelgard breathed deeply, a sad expression on her face.

"I dream of my older brother, paralyzed, helpless…my older sister crying for help that never came…the youngest babbling words beyond meaning. I see my family dying slowly, waiting in the darkest depths for a glimmer of light that never came.

I once had ten siblings, eight older and two younger. Such a large family yet I became the heir to the throne. Do you know why? Every last one of them died, was crippled by disease or lost their mind. In the end I was the only remaining."

Byleth was almost speechless about what he was hearing.

"Why such a tragedy would happen?"

"Things just kept getting worse. The darkness kept getting darker. In the end I was the only one to survive. The nightmares are a reminder to never forget what happened… and to never allow such tragedy to happen again"

"Never again…"

"At this very moment I´m carrying the weight of the empire. The future of the empire and its people, everything…depends on me. I don´t really know why I´m telling you about my past all of a sudden, but I don´t feel uncomfortable about it neither. It may be the air of the night"

"Edelgard…"

Byleth gently hugged her.

"My Teacher…"

"You don´t have to suffer alone anymore"

"I thank you sincerely" Edelgard answered, her hands slowly climbing to his back. "But my Teacher…"

"Yes?"

"Your clothes are still wet"

"Oh, sorry" apologized Byleth taking a step back.

"If you want to protect me you should take more care of yourself" she said. "It can´t be helped, take this" she handed him a towel, avoiding his eyes. "You should at least dry your hair. I don´t want you to fall ill"

"Thank you Edelgard" he said taking the towel she was offering him. After using it he returned it to her.

"I should return now. I hope you can continue sleeping."

"Wait"

"Yes?"

"It would be rude just leaving like that since you were the one to enter my room in the first place. Besides, it is still raining. You should wait until it stops" Edelgard said toying with her hair.

Byleth had recently noticed that new habit of her, although he had never seen her doing it in front of other people.

"I will stay then" he said, a light smile forming on his face.

They spent their time talking, even though the rain stopped after a while they didn´t seem to notice it.

….

Edelgard look to the sky, which was getting clearer.

"I´m afraid you should be leaving my Teacher. Soon the dawn will come and I don´t want to see Hubert´s face if he sees you here"

Byleth nodded to her.

"Bye Edelgard"

"Thank you for this time, it was eventful to me"

"I have the same feeling"

Byleth left Edelgard´s room without looking back. Sothis had remained silent since he entered Edelgard´s room. Wondering if she was sleeping again, Sothis´s voice came to him.

"I´m not sleeping yet. I didn´t want to spoil the moment"

"The burdens of her past still have a heavy influenced on her. That such atrocity was committed to the emperor´s family would be unthinkable"

"She didn´t tell you who were the responsible of those events, but I´m sure she will tell you someday. She trusts you, at least more than in the beginning."

"I´m happy to hear that"

"The fact that you are smiling more often makes me happy too"

"It´s a pity that I learnt nothing about these dreams I´m having. However, I´m happy that I was able to learn something new about my student. I guess that it wasn´t in vain"

"You should take more care of yourself. The old Professor and the little girl are right. You shouldn´t put your health at risk for something that you don´t even know it´s real"

"You are right; I will keep the sword at my room, but not with me, at least for now"

"For now? It seems that you intend to persevere" Sothis sighted. "You can do as you wish, but don´t break your own body in the process"

"I promise I won´t"

Byleth entered his room and changed his clothes. He decided to place the Sword of the Creator under his bed mattress.

"It´s comical to see such a mighty weapon being hidden under your own bed mattress" commented Sothis.

After that, he decided to head to the greenhouse to check his plants.

"Morning Teach, where are you going?" someone asked.

Byleth turned his head and saw Claude leaning on the column next to his room.

"Heading to the greenhouse and you?"

"Nothing really, sometimes I feel like relaxing. I was thinking about going to the sauna. It helps the circulation of blood in your body and leaves you completely ready for a good sleep. Would you like to take one?"

"I wouldn´t mind, but first I want to check my plants"

"I will accompany you then." He said elegantly catching his walking speed. "It has been a while since the last time we talked like this. Edelgard must had you really busy, but I thank you for training with Lysithea. I told you we are more relaxed over here"

"She is a good student and helps me to learn too". It had been a while since the last time he trained with Manuela, but she seemed really busy dealing with ill students due to the unstable weather of the last weeks and he didn´t want to bother her so training with Lysithea had been very useful.

"I´m sure she would love to hear that from you. She is studying really hard. If Raphael had the same will to sit and study…" he sighted. "By the way Teach, I heard you are heading to the north this month. I wanted to take part in it, but I heard that they are already students accompanying you. Can I know their names?"

"I´m sorry to hear that. This month I´ll be going with Felix and Sylvain".

"In the case of Felix I can understand, but Sylvain?" he laughed. "Isn´t he the guy that is trying to seduce every single woman in Fódlan? There may be more to him if you are taking him to the battlefield"

They arrived to the greenhouse, where Byleth watered his plants.

"You have quite a bunch of flowers Teach"

"I plan to use it as birthday presents." He was trying to make a list of the birthdays of the students of the different houses to send them present for their birthday.

"I see. In the case of Raphael a well done steak would do better, though"

"You can take one if you want"

"Then I will pick one of these" Claude said picking a Carnation.

"I didn´t know you like that kind of flower"

"Not in particular, but I know someone who does" he said winking at him "I hope the imperial princess doesn´t get mad because of this. Let´s go to the sauna now"

With nothing urgent in particular to do, Byleth accompanied Claude to the sauna.

On their way to it they came across with Dimitri, who was talking with Dedue, his closest confidant.

"Good morning Professor. I see that you also like to get up early. Good morning to you too Claude"

"Good morning, your Highness. I was taking Teach to the sauna. Do you want to come too?"

"A sauna? I´m afraid that I´m not used to hot environments"

"If you never try, you will never know. That´s my saying"

"You don´t have to worry, your Highness. If you faint I will be there for you" promised Dedue.

"If the Professor is also coming it would be rude to decline your invitation Claude. I will accept it"

"Our numbers have doubled Teach. In a short while we will be having an army" laughed Claude.

They entered the sauna building and went to the locker room. Byleth received a short sleeved shirt and a pair of trousers that matched the color of his hair. When he changed his clothes, he saw that Claude was wearing similar clothes, except the shirt, which was yellow.

"You look like another student Teach" said Claude while smiling.

Dimitri was also wearing a blue shirt and Dedue´s was comically small. "They didn´t have a good size for me" he lamented.

They entered the sauna, each one taking a seat. Dimitri and Dedue sat together as they did Byleth and Claude.

"What are you supposed to do now?" asked Byleth

"Absolutely nothing, that´s the key" Claude smiled to him. "We can use this time to chat and relax. It will be good for you Teach. Now you have the Sword of the Creator. I didn´t expect that weapon to appear here in the monastery. Did you see something interesting down there?"

"I was focused on fighting the western church members, but there were numerous tombs located there."

"I see. That means that there could be more weapons down there…or just old bones. How are you doing Dimitri, you are a bit too quiet"

"It´s hot, but not intolerable. Professor, I heard from Sylvain that he and Felix will be taking part in your next task. They can be troublesome at times, but I´m sure that you will get used to them"

"Regarding your mission assistances you are taking way too much favoritism with the Blue Lions students Teach. You should give us some love too. I would like to lend a hand and I´m sure that Lysithea would also like to, since she is training with you. Hilda is lazy, but I can persuade her. Raphael is ready for everything regarding fighting and Ignatz is an extremely accurate archer. Leonie would surely want to compete against you and Marianne is sweet when you spend time with her. And Lorenz is just Lorenz I guess"

"The next time we leave on a mission I will take that into account"

"It´s settled then. No need to be so formal" he laughed.

They kept chatting like that for a while. Dedue and Dimitri were the first to leave when Dimitri felt he was reaching his limit.

Byleth was starting to feel a bit of dizziness, he was feeling sleepy. He closed his eyes for a moment.

When he opened his eyes, he wasn´t in the sauna, but at the top of a mountain. The wind was roaring around him, but he didn´t matter.

A man was approaching him, accompanied by two guards.

"Hello Riegan, it´s been a while since the last time I saw you"

"The pleasure is mine Nemesis, or should I call you Your Highness?"

"Do as you please. I want you to join me"

"You aren´t the negotiator type, don´t you? If the rumors are true, you were able to sack the city of the gods. How did you do that?"

"With this" Nemesis said unsheathing the Sword of the Creator.

The Sword shined with a violent light. It was almost blinding.

"Really impressive I must admit." Riegan said, admiring the sword.

"I plan to consolidate my position in Fódlan. To achieve that I want the most important leaders of this part of the continent to join me"

"I´m flattened to be included in such category"

"We have known each other for years Riegan. Even if our paths weren´t the same I offer you to serve me. In exchange I have much to offer you"

"I´m all ears"

"First of all, this bow" he said showing him a golden bow that transmitted a magnificent power. "I know that you are found of bows and this weapon is incomparable to the rest of bows in this world"

"I must admit that I sense a powerful aura coming from it. Is this a weapon from the city you sacked?"

"It is, but a mere mortal is unable to wield it or he will find his death"

"You are offering a poisonous gift then Nemesis. A weapon that has no use to a mortal like me"

"It is true that in your current state you wouldn´t be able to wield it, but that can be changed"

"What do you mean?"

"The child of the Goddess excelled in lots of areas, including magic. Among them were those who were unable to use such magnificent weapons, but their research allowed them to discover a way to overcome this impossibility" he said showing him a potion with a strange glowing green liquid inside. "This potion will allow you to use the weapon that I offer you. If you swear to serve me with loyalty"

"How do I know it won´t kill me?"

"I drank it too" he said, showing him the Sword of the Creator again.

"I guess that you are not lying. Very well I will take your word on that." Riegan said taking the potion that Nemesis was offering to him. After drinking it he touched the bow, which lightly shined.

"It´s all yours if you serve me"

"I will do it, but my clan only controls a small portion of this land. What will you do?"

"In the case of warriors of great renown I will offer them the same conditions I offered you. Those who decline my offer or oppose me will face my wrath"

"Understood, I will be telling my clan that we are joining you"

After Riegan left, Nemesis looked to the sky. "Day after day I grow stronger. I will be the king of this region of Fódlan and no one will ever stop me"

"You are right" said a man covered in black clothes. "With that power no one will be able to oppose you. You have the gratitude of my kin"

"I hope that we can cooperate from now on"

"Of course, the Argarthans and humans share deep ties between each other. With the disappearance of the fake Goddess, humanity will see a new age of development. I hope that both of our dreams come to true."

"Together we will be unstoppable. Those who oppose us will perish" Nemesis said as he grinned

….

"His body is burning"

"What have you done to my Teacher, Claude?"

"I´m really sorry Edelgard, he looked fine until he suddenly fell to the ground"

"Will he get better Professor Manuela?"

"You don´t have to worry Edelgard, he is in good hands with me"

"I agree with Manuela, you don´t have to worry I´ll help him to get better too, he is a colleague after all"

Byleth opened his eyes. He tried to incorporate himself, but he was stopped by a woman´s hands.

"You have to rest Byleth"

"You passed out in the sauna Teach, I didn´t expect something like that to happen. I´m really sorry"

"My Teacher I´m glad to see you awakened again" said Edelgard with a faint smile on her face.

"This weather is to blame. I think that you are demanding too much from your body. You should rest for a while"

"Manuela is right. I´m glad that, at least you were accompanied by someone. It could have been worse" observed Hanemann.

"For the time being you should try to get some rest" said Manuela. "And you must drink this" she said, offering him a cup filled with a bright blue liquid. It will boost your recuperation.

"When can I leave this place?"

"I expected that question coming from you Byleth" Manuela smiled. "I recommend at least a few days of rest. We are at the beginning of the month so you don´t have to worry about your students been underprepared"

"Manuela and I will substitute you for the following days. Just leave it to us"

"Thank you" Byleth said with a faint smile.

"Seeing your smile is enough repayment for me" smiled Manuela. "We must let Byleth rest today."

"I´ll inform the rest of the Black Eagle´s about your condition my Teacher. I promise I´ll return tomorrow"

"I´ll do the same with my class. And sorry about that Teach. I didn´t expect something like that to happen" apologized again Claude.

"It´s not your fault Claude. Don´t blame yourself" reassured him Byleth.

One by one they started to leave, the last one of them Edelgard, who still looked worried. When he was the last one remaining in the room a familiar voice came to him.

"You are pushing yourself to the limit. You should worry more about your wellbeing"

"I swear it wasn´t my intention. I wasn´t even taking the Sword of the Creator with me"

"It may be that your weakened physical state made you see that kind of dream again. We are facing forces we don´t know, but you heard them. Your skin felt like it was burning. Even if we don´t know the complete truth you can´t exhaust yourself like that"

"You are completely right" Byleth sighted "I was too busy trying to find out my relation with the Sword of the Creator and I forgot the wellbeing of my own body"

"Don´t let that search of knowledge consume you. It´s not worth it"

"Thank you for worrying about me Sothis"

"What could you do without me Byleth." She sighed "We share the same body, but I must say that we are something more than that, we are friends as the smiley student usually says"

"Friends" Byleth thought. When he first arrived to the monastery, he considered that concept alien to him, but after spending all these months with different people he had come to understand more of it.

"I consider you a friend too Sothis"

"In that case promise me that you won´t hurt yourself in your seek of answers"

"…"

"Listen Byleth, I´m as intrigued as you, but if the price for it is watching people that care about you get worried it is simply not worth it"

Among the faces of the people that came to his mind were his father´s and Edelgard´s.

"I must admit that you are right. I will be more careful from now on. I don´t want them to suffer"

"I´m always right didn´t you know that?" smiled Sothis "It´s a promise then"

"Yes, of course"

"There is something you should know"

"What kind of thing?"

"You are not Nemesis, neither Seiros. You are just Byleth, a former mercenary working as a Professor now, that has trouble expressing his own feelings but that is perfect the way he is. Don´t ever forget who you are"

Hearing that, Byleth felt an intense feeling of happiness that made him feel pain in his heart.

"Thank you Sothis, from the bottom of my heart, I really appreciate your kind words"

"Don´t be so solemn about that" said Sothis, a bit embarrassed. "It´s my only way to help you, since I have no body of my own. Friends exist to support each other and overcome difficulties, right?"

"I didn´t expect you to be so nice"

"How cruel!"

"It was a joke"

"Your sense of humor is nonexistent. You need a lot to learn yet"

Byleth watched the sun hiding behind the mountains. He closed his eyes and for the first time in a while he was able rest without the torment of visions. "I´m Byleth, and my path in this life is mine to decide" he thought as he entered the realm of dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Night crawling is the meaning of the word 夜這い (Yobai). It basically consists in a man sneaking into a woman´s room at night. The surprising thing is that it was a tolerated practice in ancient Japan, although the tradition (could you call it that?) varied from place to place.
> 
> I hope that everyone is enjoying the story as I do.


	19. The bonds with his students

**8/3 Verdant rain Moon**

The morning came, the first rays of sun piercing through the darkness of the infirmary. Byleth was feeling better after a night of rest. He was getting up when the door suddenly opened.

"You should stay in bed Byleth! As the responsible of this infirmary is my duty to take care of you, so make it easier for me"

"Good morning Manuela, I´ve done nothing. Don´t worry"

"Even though you were so weak yesterday you seem alright. What gave you Jeralt as a child?" she laughed. "Drink this" she said, offering to him a potion.

"Thank you"

"By the way, Seteth will be coming here soon"

"Seteth?"

"Yes, I was surprised about that too, but it seems he wants to discuss a private matter with you. He will come soon. Drink it all. I´m sure you will receive visits today so you need to be strong" she said winking at him.

Seteth arrived 5 minutes after Manuela had already left his usual serious expression on his face.

"Good morning Professor. I heard that yesterday you lost consciousness in the sauna. I hope that you will soon recover and retake your duties."

"I´ll do it as soon as possible"

"I wanted to discuss another matter with you. We have developed a box capable of sealing the power of the sword. The archbishop insists that you use the sword in battle, but it would be unnecessary to carry it within the grounds of the monastery. I planned to inform you about it yesterday, but you were already in the infirmary. Can I ask where do you have the Sword of the Creator?"

"It is under the mattress"

"The Sword of the Creator under a mattress?" asked a genuinely shocked Seteth.

"I think it is a wonderful idea brother. I do the same to hide my favorite sweets" said Flayn, who was standing beside the door.

"Flayn you shouldn´t listen to private conversations. Comparing a mythical sword with sweets is just weird"

"Why brother? Both are valuable and a lot of people would like to take them. Besides, the fact that you are shocked means it was good place to hide it, right?"

"If you say it like that… Anyway Professor, to guarantee the security of the sword I need you to touch this orb with your bare hand" said Seteth offering him the mysterious object, his hand gloved. The seal will only be deactivated when you touch it. That way we can assure that no one apart from you can have a reliable access to the sword."

"Understood" he said while he touched the orb, that glowed bright blue the moment he touched it.

"Thank you for your cooperation. I will place the sword in the box in your room. Come with me Flayn, we don´t want to disturb the Professor."

"Yes brother" said Flayn, but before leaving she handed him a bunch of sweets she was keeping in a pocket of her dress. "Keep it a secret between us Professor Byleth. I wouldn´t like my brother to find out" said Flayn while smiling.

"Of course" Byleth reassured her

After a while he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in"

Edelgard entered the room wearing her usual school uniform.

"Do you feel better my Teacher?"

"Yes, thank you"

"I´ve just informed everyone about your incident. I´m sure that everyone will come to visit you. They seemed very worried about your wellbeing"

Hearing the worries of his students made his heart move a bit.

"I´m sorry that I can´t teach you for now"

"What are you saying? You shouldn´t put your own health at risk for the sake of your students. I am the first person to enjoy your classes, but that doesn´t mean that I want you to lose your health"

"Thank you for worrying about me. I really appreciate it"

"If my presence doesn´t bother you I brought this with me" she said showing him a board game.

"I haven´t played one of these"

"You don´t have to worry I can teach you. I used to play this kind of game when I was younger, although nowadays I barely use it. I would be happy if I were able to use it with you"

"I would like to, but is it ok for you to skip class?"

"You don´t have to worry about that Professor." smiled Edelgard. "Professor Manuela and Hanneman have decided to give us a free day so we can visit you at the infirmary."

"Then I have no problem playing with you"

Edelgard placed the board game on a desk next to his bed. She explained him the rules and they started playing. Byleth quickly realized that it wasn´t a simple game, but a military strategy one.

"I guess these are the kind of games the noblemen play. They are preparing for war, even if it is a mere game" Byleth commented.

"You are right Professor" said Edelgard while she moved a unit. "That is its main purpose, but it can be entertaining by itself"

Their game was interrupted, when the door opened again, his students appearing one after another.

"Morning Professor, are you ok?"

"If he were ok he would be giving us class Caspar" sighed Linhardt. "Edelgard told us about yesterday´s events. You shouldn´t push yourself too hard"

"That´s right Professor, we don´t want you to fall ill" said Dorothea

"I prepared some sweets, I hope you get better" said Bernadetta, avoiding his gaze.

"I will gladly take it. I´m happy to see all of you here"

"Even I?" asked Hubert who was standing next to the door, a sinister smile on his face.

"Even you Hubert. To me you are not different to the other students"

"Bernadetta isn´t the only one who brought a present for you Professor" said Ferdinand, offering him a pair of leather gloves. "Made by the best artisans of the Adrestian Empire. They were sent for me, but I think you will give them a better use"

"I wanted to give you a pair of magic ear plugs" said Linhardt. "They will help you sleep even if a storm is outside"

"This is for you Professor" said Dorothea giving him a golden bracelet. "You are handsome, but you should treat better your own looks."

"I didn´t bring anything" admitted Caspar "But I promise I won´t be shouting when I attack as you said."

"I will consider it as a present too Caspar"

"This is a pendant to avoid bad luck. In Brigid we use it to expel the evil spirits from our life"

"I guess that I´m the only one left. This is the same kind of fountain pen that I use. I´m sure you will find it useful"

"Thank you, all of you. I really appreciate it"

"Oh my! You are smiling! That´s enough repayment for me" smiled Dorothea.

"I didn´t expect seeing something like that" chuckled Hubert.

"When you laugh it´s scary, please stop" cried Bernadetta

"Here we go again" sighted Dorothea

They spent some time chatting until one by one they returned to their duties.

"Shall we continue Professor?"

"Of course Edelgard"

Students from other houses started to come too. Claude was one of the first to arrive, accompanied by Lysithea, who was holding handmade sweets.

"Morning Teach" greeted him Claude. "You should check outside. Professor Manuela has started to make a queue to avoid pressuring you. I´m sure she is jealous about the attention you are gathering."

"It´s only natural, since he is helping students outside his own class" said Lysithea. "I brought these sweets for you. I made them myself. You can try them too"

"Be careful Teach, they may be too sweet for your liking."

"I think that regarding sweets the sweeter the better, don´t you agree Edelgard?"

"I share the same opinion as you Lysithea" smiled Edelgard.

Byleth took one of the sweets and ate it. It was too sweet, but it was tolerable.

"Thank you Lysithea, I really appreciate it"

"I´m glad to hear that" Lysithea sincerely smiled.

Lysithea and Edelgard were talking while eating sweets. Meanwhile Claude was looking through the window, a gentle breeze coming from the exterior.

The door opened again and Manuela appeared. "I´m sorry to interrupt, but there are too many students and it wouldn´t be fair to make them wait any longer."

"I told you Teach. You have built quite an army of admirers"

"Can I stay here Professor Manuela? I´ve nothing else to do and as the leader of my house I think it would be more appropriate if I stay here"

"I don´t see a problem with it. Do you mind it Byleth?"

"Not at all"

"See you soon then Teach"

"You must eat all the sweets. I´m sure you will end enjoying it too"

"I will give my best"

Student after student they came to visit him. He was surprised with such reactions from them. The sweet Annette and Mercedes, the solemn Dimitri and quiet Dedue, the shy Ignatz and the happy Raphael. Everyone had come to visit no matter the House they came from.

"I didn´t expect so much people to come. I must admit that I´m a bit envious of your popularity my Teacher" Edelgard commented when Sylvain and Felix left.

"I´m surprised too" Byleth admitted, but he was feeling happiness deep inside him.

Their conversation was interrupted when the door violently opened.

"Byleth!"

Alois came running to him, hugging him with such force he couldn´t breathe.

"I swore to protect you, yet I wasn´t able to do anything. I´m so sorry! I promise to protect you better from now on!"

"I can´t…"

"What?"

"I can´t…breathe"

"Oh sorry Byleth"

"Alois, you should control yourself" sighed Shamir, who was standing next to the door. "Alois wanted to come as soon as he heard what happened to you, but I told him that he shouldn´t skip his guards. I´m glad to see you better Byleth"

After promising him again that he will do anything to protect him, Alois left with a smile on his face, closely followed by a Shamir who was silently laughing.

"The sun is starting to set. I should take my leave. It´s a pity that we couldn´t continue our game, since we were interrupted so many times"

"It doesn´t matter. I will leave it as it is; you are free to come to continue"

"I will come then. Don´t dare to cheat in the game. I will notice" she smiled to him

"I promise I won´t"

"Good night Byleth"

Hearing his name from her lips was a strange sight, although he felt a strange feeling of happiness when he heard it, a bit different to the happiness he was feeling this day.

"Good night Edelgard, sleep well"

After Edelgard left Sothis voice came to his mind.

"You are quite popular Byleth"

"I don´t know exactly why"

"I guess that your willingness to help everyone no matter their backgrounds has a lot to do with it. Your interactions with your students are changing you…for the better."

"Maybe this isn´t a bad place to stay after all"

"The fact that a former mercenary like you can feel comfortable in a place like this speak volumes"

Their conversation was interrupted when Manuela returned. She was accompanied by two members of the church carrying a small bathtub.

"I bet that you are exhausted after such attention from the students. If I found so much devotion in my dates…" she sighed. "We have brought you a bathtub to keep your hygiene in order. I wouldn´t want to see such a cute face getting dirty. Also take this; it will help with your sleep. You are getting better faster than I expected so I´m sure that in a few days you will be back at job"

"Thank you Manuela"

"You aren´t the only one who lately has exceeded its limits. Instructor Jeritza also came to this place seeking medicine for his injuries. Both of you train too hard."

"You may be right"

"I´m sure I am. For now rest Byleth. And don´t worry, Hanneman and I will take good care of your students for the time being" she reassured him.

After she left, Byleth took off his clothes and entered the bathtub. He touched the scar he had in his chest. He had no memories about the origins of it, but he had seen it since he was a young boy. After cleaning his body he changed his clothes and drank the potion she had just given to him. He looked to the sky while he ate a pair of sweets from Bernadetta and Lysithea. The combination of flavors was surprisingly good.

Noting the effects of the potion he returned to his bed.

"It wouldn´t be too bad if days like this were more frequent" he thought as a feeling of dizziness took hold of his body.

**8/9 Verdant rain Moon**

The next days were followed by heavy rain, but Byleth didn´t mind. He had recovered his forces and he was ready to retake his position as a Professor. Besides, he was accompanied by her. Edelgard has kept her promise and had visited him every day. He was thankful that she was able to give him some time despite her busy schedule. In fact, he was thankful that everyone was so nice to him, now it was his time to reciprocate.

"Good morning Byleth" smiled to him Manuela. "I see that you are already ready for retaking your responsibilities. You are free to come again every time you fall ill" she winked to him.

"Thank you Manuela, I really appreciate your help"

"As time passes you are getting more talkative Byleth. I´m happy to see that. Take care!"

Byleth left behind him the infirmary and headed to the stairs, where he found her.

"Good morning, my Teacher. Seeing you completely recovered makes me happy. Shall we return to the classroom? I´m sure that everyone is already waiting for you."

"Of course, I´m looking forward to teaching all of you again"

"Me too" she smiled to him.

They arrived to his class and everyone grew silent when they saw him.

"You have finally arrived Professor!" shouted Caspar.

"I thought you promise to be quieter from now on Caspar" said Linhardt.

"In battle, this isn´t a battle, it's a celebration!"

"It has only been a week, but it feels like a long time Professor" said Ferdinand.

"Professor Hanneman and Manuela had been nice to us, but I guess that you are the best to us" smiled Dorothea.

"Professor is strong. I´m happy to see you well. I can´t wait for our next hunt!"

"Petra, hunting is a bit more different, but I know that you are also happy to see the Professor"

"I feel less stressed with you Professor so I´m happy to see your return" confessed Bernadetta.

"Everyone seems quite moved by your return Professor" laughed Hubert.

"Don´t laugh like that, I told you its scary!"

"Pardon me"

"Even if I´m not from the same class, I must admit that this is a heartwarming experience" smiled Sylvain. "Don´t you think Felix?"

"Are you practicing a new line for your hook ups? I came here to train, not for idle chatting"

"I thank you all of you. However, we need to train as much as possible from now on. Stay focus. We will be spending the day fighting outside"

"A week without suffering, time passes fast, but I guess that I don´t mind it this time" commented Linhardt.

"Are you ok Linhardt. Are you sick?" asked a surprised Caspar.

"Even I can do some effort from time to time"

…..

Despite the rain they trained outside with renewed forces. All of them were focused on the task at hand and they gave their best shot. Byleth was greatly surprised by them.

"All of you did very well. We will keep this pace from now on. Tomorrow you will rest and the day after tomorrow we will continue and so on. I have to check the date we are leaving the monastery. All of you are free to go now"

Everyone returned to the monastery covered in mud, but there were smiles on their faces.

"They are exhausted, yet they are happy" observed Sothis. "I guess that they really appreciate your guiding"

"They are progressing and that makes me feel happy"

"I guess so, thanks to your students you develop your emotions and thanks to you they progress in their dreams. When people help each other without holding back they can achieve great results"

"Professor Byleth!"

"Oh, hello Lysithea, Can I help you?"

"I would like to resume our training. Would you like to?"

"Of course, I have no problem with that"

"Did you like the sweets I give you?"

"Yes, they were really sweet but I could eat them"

"There is nothing like a sweet that is too sweet, but I´m glad that you ate it. At least you eat them, I offered some of them to Felix, but I´m sure he just dropped them"

Felix eating sweets was something difficult to imagine.

"I guess it is a matter of taste"

"By the way, you promised to have tea with me. Do you think that because I´m the youngest student I have forgotten about it?"

"The youngest?"

"You don´t know? I´m the youngest student at this academy"

"Does it make a difference?"

Lysithea was surprised by Byleth´s question.

"It doesn´t, but most people think that because I´m the youngest they can treat me as a child, but they are wrong. I thought you were just pretending to be nice, but now I know that you were genuine. Sorry for making wrong assumptions" said a slightly embarrassed Lysithea.

"No worries. When do you want to have a cup of tea with me?"

"I have some projects to prepare so is the 15th a good date for you?"

"I have no problem with that. See you then"

After leaving her, Byleth returned to his room. The magic box that Seteth had explained him about was in a corner of his room. Byleth touched the orb that glowed blue before activating a hidden mechanism that opened the box.

The Sword of the Creator was there, waiting inoffensively.

"Are you sure you should touch it?" asked Sothis

"I will eventually have to use it, so there is no point to avoid. Don´t worry I won´t be sleeping next to it"

"Understood. Anyway be careful"

Byleth touched the Sword with his bare hand. The moment he touched it the Sword of the Creator emitted a faint glow, but he didn´t sense something strange about it.

"I feel nothing in particular strange with the sword right now."

"It may be because you have recovered your health. You had those visions with an environment that had you in a weakened state, for example while sleeping or in a sauna. There is no denying that you have a connection with the sword, but I wouldn´t trust an object capable of doing such things if I were you"

"I know. You and Hanneman are right. I should use it at least as possible until he discovers something new."

"If you were clever you would have done that from the beginning, but at least you know now"

Byleth placed the Sword of the Creator in the box again. The moment he closed it the orb glowed again and the hidden mechanism activated, sealing the Sword within it.

"I wonder what kind of magic is necessary to create one of these" asked himself, when he saw a mountain of paperwork on his desk. There were mostly from Seteth.

"I kind of understand why my father doesn´t like this kind of work", thought to himself, sitting on his chair and starting to write reports.

…..

**8/15 Verdant rain Moon**

Days were passing really fast as Byleth and his students trained. Byleth had been informed about the date they were leaving the monastery. They will leave the 22th of the month. The thieves had been spotted in the lands of Galatea and they had taken the Conand Tower as their base of operations. They will be accompanied by Gilbert, one of the knights of Seiros, which had an extremely serious expression on his face, yet his physical attributes remembered him somewhat of Annette, the blue lion's student.

Byleth was studying a map of Fódlan´s northern region. According to their route plan, they would leave behind the monastery and they would cross the lands of Charon and Galatea before arriving to the Conand Tower. Byleth feared that most of the roads would have turned to mud when they leave the monastery, but it was the best option since deviating to the Leicester Alliance would cost time and they weren´t sure that the thieves were to stay permanently there. The journey to their objective was hard, but he was confident that his students would achieve great results.

"Now I have to prepare some sweets and tea for Lysithea." Byleth thought. He knew that Lysithea liked extremely sweet things so he chose the Southern Fruit Blend. He then decided to go to the kitchen to prepare some sweets. He knew that compared to her, his skills were lacking, but he thought he would prefer that to nothing.

…

"Enough for today Hubert. Thank you for your report"

"It´s always a pleasure serving you"

After Hubert left, Edelgard thought about the upcoming events. "In less than two weeks we will be heading to the north." The weather was already bad at the monastery she didn't want to imagine how it would be in the Holy Kingdom. The good news was that with this weather communications with his uncle were slower. In the last letter she had received at the beginning of the month his uncle had demanded her to lend him the Death Knight. She had no reason to refuse so she accepted his request. Jeritza was loyal to him, but she knew that at times he was difficult to control as he showed in the events of the holy Tomb. "At least my Teacher was able to defeat him" she thought.

She started to walk aimlessly until she arrived to the main hall. Due to the bad weather some of the students were sitting at the tables and chatting between each other. Her eyes instinctively searched for teal hair. She found him sitting a few tables ahead her. She was approaching him when she realized he was having teatime with Lysithea. She wasn´t sure if she should disturb them when Lysithea noticed her.

"Edelgard, come here!"

Relieved, she approached them and sat next to Lysithea, in front of her Professor.

"Hello Lysithea, Professor. I didn´t expect both of you here"

"I promised Lysithea to have teatime with her, since she was the one that helped me when I invited you" Byleth expression was neutral but it appeared more relaxed.

"There is no need to thank me. You have improved quite a lot. Give it a try Edelgard"

Edelgard picked one of the cookies that Lysithea was offering her and ate it. The flavor was a bit too sweet for her taste, but she knew that her Teacher had chosen it based on Lysithea´s preferences.

"It´s great" she smiled to both of them.

"I´m glad to hear that" said Byleth with a light smile on his face. She had grown fond of these little manifestations of humanity from her Professor. It made her feel a comfortable sensation inside her.

They spent their time chatting about lots of unimportant things, yet she couldn´t deny that it was an enjoyable experience.

"Thank you for inviting me Professor" said Lysithea.

"I enjoyed it too, and you Edelgard?"

"Me too, resting from time to time doesn´t sound that bad"

"You sound like Linhardt"

"My Teacher if you want to make a joke you should change your expression a bit more"

"I will be heading to the library" said Lysithea while she prepared her things.

"Lysithea, you can take the remaining sweets if you want to" offered him Byleth.

Lysithea accepting his offer, took a bunch of them and then looked to Edelgard

"If you want, you can take the rest Edelgard"

"I will accept it, thank you"

After Lysithea left, silent fell between both of them for a while, but it wasn´t an uncomfortable one. Byleth then placed the table game she had been using with him on the table.

"The last time we fought you defeated me with ease. Would you allow me to have a rematch?"

"It will be my pleasure" she said as response.

Playing a board game while the rain was falling brought her tender memories of her past, a past that it was sweet, yet painful to remember.

"Are you ok?"

"It´s nothing, I was just a bit nostalgic"

They played three games. The first one was won by her, but Byleth won the second and the third one ended in draw.

"I must admit that you have improved in no time my Teacher"

"I guess that I have a great Professor" he said looking directly at her.

"Thank you for your compliment. It´s getting late I should be returning to my room"

"If you want I can accompany you"

"I will gladly take your offer"

They walked together to the students dormitories.

"Rest well Edelgard"

"You too Professor"

She closed the door behind her and sat in front of her desk. A new letter was waiting to be opened. She broke the seal and read its content. She didn´t like a bit the plans his uncle was preparing for the next month. "I wonder what he intends with this plan" she thought as she destroyed the letter, setting it afire with a candle next to her.


	20. Longing to stay

**8/22 Verdant rain Moon**

"Good morning everyone" said Byleth greeting his students, that were already assembling at the gates of the monastery. "We will be leaving shortly, don´t forget your weapons and provisions. You will be at the vanguard with me. Gilbert, the mercenaries and the church members will stay at the rearguard of our group. The provisions at the center"

"Understood Professor"

He then approached Gilbert, who was already on his war horse.

"Good morning Professor. The archbishop has ordered me to accompany you in this quest. I will act as your guide until we arrive to our objective"

"The weather won´t be merciful on us" commented Byleth, looking at the sky, which was already getting darker.

"The rain season is particularly strong in the north, but your students aren´t ill equipped. Now if you forgive me" he said as he excused himself.

Byleth noticed Annette, the blue lion's student watching them from the distance. She and Gilbert shared similar physical traits that made Byleth suspicious about Gilbert´s identity. "I will have to ask her after I return. If she doesn´t mind" he thought.

They left the monastery under a cloudy day, which only got worse witch each mile that approached them to their objective. Among his students, Felix and Sylvain were barely affected by the rain, as they were the students that were the most adapted to these conditions. However, the rest of the students were quickly starting to suffer the consequences of the rain, especially Petra.

"This weather is horrible" commented Sothis inside her head. "You should check your students if you don´t want them to get ill"

Byleth approached Petra, who was shivering from the weather.

"How are you doing Petra?"

"I don´t like cold" she admitted. "But I must be strong, for the Professor, for my classmates"

"That´s the spirit, but don´t push yourself too hard. If you need to stop tell me"

"Thank you Professor" she nodded at him.

After a few hours they entered Kingdom territory and the rain got worse. The visibility was also poor, but the village they were trying to arrive was still too far away.

"We need to go faster" he shouted to his students.

"That´s impossible" complained Linhardt. "The visibility is poor and it's raining cats and dogs. I really miss the monastery"

"Our advance is slowed down by the rearguard" observed Hubert. "I can´t really blame them, since they are the responsible of our provisions too"

"I will tell Gilbert that we are advancing on our own. This is not a place to establish a camp"

After informing Gilbert about the change of action, he pressed his students to advance forward. The sun was starting to set when they arrived to the gates of the village, but he didn´t really know since all he could see was rain. The locals were intrigued by the composition of the group, but when they understood that they were coming from the monastery they relaxed. Getting of the horse he approached one of them.

"We were informed that you will be coming here" one of the locals said. "We have some free beds, but the rest of the army must wait outside of the village. We don´t have enough space for them here"

"Thank you for your hospitality"

"You are coming to take care of those bandits so it is the only way that we can thank your efforts"

"Rest all of you. We will continue at dawn."

"That´s tough Professor" complained Dorothea

"The sooner we end this, the faster we return, think it that way"

"Aren´t you coming too Professor?" asked Caspar

"Not yet. As the commander of this expedition I must wait until everyone else arrives. It wouldn´t be fair to them"

"Let me accompany you then" said Edelgard "As a future ruler and commander I shouldn´t take luxuries while my troops are still fighting against the elements"

"You are free to stay" although Byleth was worried about her health, her face almost covered in fur clothes.

The rest of them slowly enter the Hostel, although Hubert eyes lingered a bit more of him, as if they were reproaching him Edelgard´s decision.

"I told you before that I enjoyed the rain, but I must admit this is completely different. I don´t like this cold"

"Is it because the empire is warmer?"

"It may be. To be fair I was once in the Holy Kingdom, but my memories of that time are blurred. What do you think about our task ahead Professor? I sense that some of my classmates are nervous about it"

"I can understand why, but no matter what happens I will protect all of you"

"Thank you for your kind words. I must admit that the fact that we have grown as a group is thanks to you."

"I´m glad to hear it, but you are also responsible of that"

Edelgard was about to respond when a freezing wind came from the north, making her shiver.

"It´s too cold"

Byleth rubbed his hands and placed them on Edelgard´s cheeks.

"My Teacher?!"

"It´s a fast way to stay warm. Did you hate it?"

"Saying that I hated it would be inappropriate, but you surprised me" she said, her face getting redder.

"It´s only natural that I worry about you Edelgard"

"I recommend you to not do it with any other student, it may cause a misunderstanding" she said avoiding his eyes.

"My father used to do it to me all the time in winter while we were travelling around Fódlan"

"The fact that the Blade Breaker can act like that is heartwarming" smiled Edelgard. "Could you tell me more about your adventures around Fódlan? I would like to hear more about them"

"I have no problem to tell you" he said with a light smile on his face.

They chattered until the rest of the expedition arrived.

….

"I will go to speak with Gilbert. Thank you for accompanying me Edelgard, see you tomorrow"

"Good night my Teacher" she said as she headed to the hostel.

Everyone was having a modest dinner in the main hall. Linhardt was sleeping on the table while Caspar was eating with such speed that it was a miracle he could breathe. Ferdinand and Hubert were sitting next to other, but the tension between them was evident. On the other side of the room Dorothea smiled when she saw her.

"Edie, over here, we were waiting for you"

"Thank you"

"Edelgard is strong. You resist very well the rain" complimented her Petra.

"The rain has messed all my hair" complained Dorothea "I would like this to end soon, but that would mean another fight" she sighed. "When I joined the academy I didn´t expect something like this"

"That´s the world we live in Dorothea, but that doesn´t mean it will always stay the same" Edelgard comforted her.

"I just want to stay in my room. There is nothing that can hurt me inside it" complained Bernadetta.

"Look on the bright side Bernie. I´ve seen you taking care of the plants in the greenhouse. If you weren´t outside you couldn´t have done something like that" said Dorothea.

"You have noticed it. I´m happy" Bernadetta shyly smiled.

"Why wouldn´t notice something like that, you are too cute for your own good! Although I must say that Edie is also cute"

"Me?"

"Of course and I´m sure that the Professor thinks the same" Dorothea giggled.

"Why do you have to mention him?" Edelgard said a little embarrassed

"You look more relaxed when you are with him, you even smile more often"

"The Professor makes sometimes jokes" observed Petra

"I know Petra, but they aren´t funny at all. Although I guess that that is also cute"

"The other day I saw him cherishing his flowers he didn´t look scary at all" said Bernadetta.

"The Professor is strong, but cute? I´m confused"

"Don´t worry Petra, this conversation has already lost its sense" sighed Edelgard.

They kept chatting like that for a while, forgetting the rain outside there. That kind of conversations relaxed her mind. She had to admit she was growing fond of all them.

Byleth appeared at midnight, closely followed by Gilbert.

"It is late. Time to go to sleep. Tomorrow at dawn we will march again"

"That´s the same for you Professor, you shouldn´t go to sleep too late" said Dorothea.

"I have some questions to ask Gilbert about the geography of this land" he said as he extended a map on the table "But thanks"

There were two rooms prepared for them, one for the girls and one for the boys.

"I fear for the security of our Professor if he has to sleep next to Hubert"

"I fear the same Dorothea" said Edelgard. Hubert was the only student that didn´t seem to enjoy the company of the Professor. Imagining them sharing the same room at night was enough to make her shiver.

"The Professor is strong, he will survive" assured them Petra

"If you say so Petra" said Dorothea. "I would like to talk a bit more, but I´m sure that the Professor will notice if he sees us with eye bags"

"You are right" said Edelgard "I must admit I´ve had fun talking with all of you"

"I enjoyed it too Edie" smiled Dorothea

"Me too, I think that I´ve learnt more about Fódlan with this conversation"

"I must say that sometimes talking is not that stressful"

"Good night then" said Edelgard to all of them.

"Good night!"

….

Edelgard opened her eyes when she heard a thunder.

"It is still completely dark. It looks like it is getting worse outside"

She looked at her surroundings, but the rest of her classmates were asleep.

"I guess that I´m the only one that woke up by the storm"

She tried to sleep again, but she couldn´t, incapable of ignoring the sound of the rain and the wind hitting the walls of the building. She then decided to leave the room and headed to the main room.

There were still small flames at the fireplace, but apart from that there wasn´t any source of light. Edelgard thought she was alone, but she was surprised when she saw her teacher sitting at the table, his arms crossed on his chest.

"My Teacher, I didn´t expect to see you here"

"…."

There was no response from him, so she approached him.

"He is sleeping" she realized. It looked like he had fallen asleep while he was checking the map in front of him. Even in dreams he had a serious expression on his face, although he looked more relaxed.

"I wonder what he is dreaming of"

Looking at him she couldn´t avoid recalling the conversation she had with her classmates. "I guess that you could consider him cute" she thought to herself, the mere thought embarrassing her.

She never really knew why she did what she did, but she went to the armchair where the food was stored, picked a glass and filled it with milk, placing it in front of her Teacher. Feeling too embarrassed to stay in his presence, she returned as fast and silently as possible to her room.

"Why am I acting like this? Hubert is right, regarding the Professor I am too reckless" she said to herself as she tried to sleep again to cast aside those embarrassing thoughts.

…..

**8/23 Verdant rain Moon**

"Everyone get up! We can´t abuse the hospitality of this people" said Byleth opening the door of her room.

"Professor you should have more tact, you are entering a lady´s room" complained Dorothea, who was combing her hair. "And you should eat your breakfast at the table. You are going to split it all over here"

Edelgard looked at what her Teacher was holding and she felt that her cheeks were getting hot when she realized he was holding the glass of milk she had place in front of him the night before.

Noticing her, the Professor looked at her.

"Do you want some Edelgard?"

"No thank you" she said avoiding his eyes.

"10 minutes and we leave. Don´t make me wait" he said as he went to knock the door of the other room.

"So harsh" complained Dorothea.

"5 minutes more Professor" she could hear Linhardt´s voice

"Get up Linhardt or I will carry you to the horse"

"Ok ok, no need to threaten me Professor"

"He might be our Professor, but he is acting like a sergeant right now" sighed Dorothea

"It may be his background" commented Edelgard

They left the village with a grey sky above them. The roads were covered in mud after the heavy rains of the last days, nevertheless they continued their path.

"The rest of the way gets easier, we only have plains from now on" explained her Professor to her.

"The faster we complete this task the faster we return"

"You don´t have to worry about that Professor, Edelgard" said Sylvain, joining their conversation. "My brother tried many times to kill me as a boy, yet he failed. I´m surprised that he is able to lead an army seeing his dumb attempts to kill me"

"I´m surprised that you can talk so lightly about attempts of killing you"

"It´s the price to pay for having a crest I guess" he sighed. He then turned to Byleth. "I must admit that I hate you Professor, despite having a crest you don´t seem to have any problems with that"

"I´m sorry"

"Just joking" laughed Sylvain, although Edelgard noticed that his eyes weren´t smiling. "I can´t wait to return to the monastery. Ladies will fall for the stories of this adventure"

"You are delusional if you think you are going to do something remarkable" scorned him Felix, who was riding next to Sylvain.

"No need to be so unfriendly Felix, the Professor might think that we aren´t friends."

"I wouldn´t like to be considered the friend of a womanizer" Felix said, taking distance from him.

"I guess that everyone changes with the pass of time." Sylvain sighted again. "Don´t worry about us Professor, we have known each other for a long time. He is just like that"

"Can I ask you something Sylvain?" asked suddenly Byleth

"If you say it like that you sound too formal. Go ahead"

"What´s love for you?"

Hearing that question from her Teacher completely surprised her.

"That´s a difficult question Professor." Said Sylvain scratching his head.

"Isn´t love what you do when you are trying to seduce girls?"

"Not completely, that´s just a bad habit I have. Of all questions you could have done you had chosen one of the most difficult"

"Then you don´t know?"

"I guess that it depends on the person. Why are you asking this? Are you interested in someone?"

Edelgard found herself waiting for her Teacher´s answer.

"I was just curious"

Edelgard felt a mixture of relief and disappointment. "What´s happening to me these days? I may be sick" she thought.

"The answer I expected" laughed Sylvain. "I think that if you looked at a girl with those eyes of yours she would fall head over heels in love with you Professor. You are free to accompany me to the town someday"

"You shouldn´t contaminate the Professor with such behaviors Sylvain" warned him Edelgard "You should change yours too"

"You are just a beast in heat" said Felix, who seemingly had approached them again.

"Ok, ok, just forget about it. Let´s be friends"

….

**8/26 Verdant rain Moon**

The sun was starting to set when they arrived to the closest village to Conand´s Tower. The mood was completely different to the first days of the expedition, only a handful of conversations taking part at a time.

"We will stay here this night. Rest and be prepared at dawn."

"Finally! I was getting tired of this endless rain!" shouted Caspar.

"Be quiet Caspar" said Linhardt. "The rain is giving us a break right now, don´t call it"

Edelgard left her things in one of the rooms that the villagers had disposed for them and searched for her Professor. She found him talking with Gilbert.

"This weather is unfortunate, but the villagers were more worried about the bandits. We have to defeat them as soon as possible before they start causing havoc" commented Gilbert

"You are right about that Sir Gilbert, but we shouldn´t underestimate their forces. The fact that Miklan was able to seize Conand´s Tower means that he is more dangerous than your average thief." she said, joining the conversation

"This area was the site of a massive battle several hundred years ago when invasions from the north were at their highest. The tower was built for surveillance and as a barrier. Taking it will take some sacrifices"

"Are you from the Kingdom?" asked Byleth

"I am, but I´ve been working for the Church for a long time. It is regretful that we have to resort to violence, but Miklan gives us no other choice."

"The existence of a Crest shouldn´t dictate your destiny. I hope that one day these meaningless fights will end"

"It´s a beautiful idea, but I am afraid that it´s meaningless in this case." He then looked to the Professor "I will trust you the security of the students. You have the full support of the Church and the mercenaries you have contracted. We will cover your back. Now if you forgive me" he said leaving them alone.

"Forsaken by the Goddess, who now demands his execution"

"You are right about the irrational importance that Crests have in our society Edelgard, but you mustn´t forget that Miklan has committed many atrocities by his own will"

"I´m not justifying his crimes. It´s just that it leaves a soar taste in my mouth that most of these problems wouldn´t exist if there weren´t Crests."

"Humans would still fight and kill each other. The nobles are an example of that"

"I´m afraid that you are right about that my Teacher, but removing a part of the problem would certainly bring a redistribution of power across Fódlan. But now it's not the time for this kind of conversation I guess"

"I don´t have any problems listening to your ideas, Edelgard. If you end up being a better ruler than your predecessors then I have nothing to say against you"

"I thank you for that" she gently smiled to him.

Byleth nodded at her as a response. He then looked at her "You should go to rest Edelgard, tomorrow is going to be a hard day. Check that the rest of the students go to sleep"

"Are you going to stay outside?"

"Only for a while, there is no need to worry about me"

"If you say so"

She returned to the building where they were allowed to stay. Everyone was more silent than usual. Even Dorothea had nothing in particular to say.

"I guess we should just go to sleep. Thinking about our next battle tomorrow makes me feel anxious"

"I promise I will keep you safe Dorothea" Edelgard promised to her. She couldn´t avoid feeling sympathy for Dorothea, a commoner that was in the middle of so many confrontations based on the ruthless ambitions of the nobility.

"You have sound like the Professor, Edie. I guess that spending so much time together has its effects." She giggled. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart Edie"

They talked a bit more, before everyone focused on their inner thoughts.

…..

"He hasn´t returned yet" Edelgard thought after two hours had already passed. She was having trouble to sleep so she decided to search for him.

Outside the building everything was completely silent, only the occasional wind could be heard. The visibility was poor so she decided to pick a torch. She walked through the woods for a while until she saw a golden light ahead of her.

"Is that the Sword of the Creator?" she asked herself "He may be training"

She approached him and hid behind a group of bushes. Despite the torch she was carrying her Professor seemed focused on the other side of the woods.

"I must use the power of this sword to protect all of them, but I promise I won´t abuse it"

"Is he speaking to someone?" but she couldn´t see anyone, she tried to advance a bit more but she stepped on a branch.

"Who is there? Show yourself" Byleth ordered, pointing the Sword of the Creator to the origin of the sound.

"It´s just me, Edelgard, my Teacher"

"Oh Edelgard, I didn´t expect you here" he said lowering his sword.

"I thought you were talking with someone"

"I sometimes talk aloud alone. There is nothing particular about it. You should be sleeping"

"I should say the same about you. What were you doing here?"

"I was just practicing a bit. I will have to use this sword tomorrow"

She could see marks of hits in the trees and rocks around her. It was starting to rain again.

"I really appreciate your hard working personality but we should return"

"I guess that you are right"

They started to return, but when they were in the middle of their path, the storm that was brewing until then finally exploded.

The torch that Edelgard was carrying rapidly extinguished. Byleth casted then a small fire on the palm of his hand, but the path they were following was quickly turning into a swamp.

"With poor vision and with such terrain we aren´t going to make it" Byleth commented. He quickly looked to his right and started walking that way. "There is a cavity in this rock; we could use it as a shelter until the storm weakens"

She followed him into the small cave. The ground was hard but it wasn´t wet. "At least something good about this" she thought.

She could hear the wind violently blowing around them and she couldn´t avoid shivering.

"The north is too cold"

She then felt familiar hands surrounding her.

"My Teacher?!" she could feel an extreme warmth accumulating in her cheeks, her heart pounding faster than usual.

"I can keep you warm if you want"

"T-Thank you, but…"

"I don´t want you to catch a cold" he said, embracing her slightly tighter.

Her heart was fighting to leave her chest and she was feeling dizzy. Feeling weak she sat down. Byleth sat alongside her. She didn´t dare to look at him.

Byleth took off his cloak and offered it to her. "We could use it as a blanket"

"Too close!" she thought, but she shyly accepted his offering.

They stayed silent for a while, the rain and the wind the only things that could be heard.

She was confused about her reactions. She didn´t like to lose control, yet regarding her Teacher she was defenseless.

"Is something bothering you Edelgard?"

"N-no my Teacher."

"You should rest. With this storm the best find we could do is sleep"

When she was young she used to sleep with her siblings, but this was completely different. She could imagine Hubert´s horrified expression and Dorothea´s smile.

"I-I will try"

Trying to control herself she focused on sleeping until tiredness took hold of her body.

….

When she opened her eyes, she wasn´t next to her Teacher, but in a dungeon. It was the place she had grown to hate. She could hear a door opening and a sound of footsteps approaching her. She didn´t dare to open her eyes until the footsteps stopped in front of her. When she opened her eyes she could see nothing but a brilliant light. Dazzled by the light she couldn´t see the person standing in front of her. The mysterious figure extended its hand to her as if it was offering to help her. She reached for it. The moment she did the dungeon disappeared as if it was mere smoke.

She then found herself standing in the middle of the Cathedral. There was snow falling. When she looked at the ceiling she realized it was partially destroyed, but it was a familiar figure a mere meters in front of her what caught her attention.

"Byleth?"

He didn´t react to her voice.

"It doesn´t matter what I say, that´s what everyone wants me to be" he simply said starting to walk to the entrance of the Cathedral.

"What do you mean?" she asked, but silence was the only thing she received. She ran to him but as she started to approach him, his figure began to dissolve.

"Don´t leave me here!" she shouted reaching for his hand, trying to stop him.

She opened her eyes.

The wind had stopped but the rain was still falling outside and it was completely dark. "I´ve had fallen asleep" she thought. She then realized she was grapping her Teacher´s hand. She quickly released her hand, feeling flustered about it when she noticed the Sword of the Creator slightly glowing between them.

"Was my dream related to this sword?" she wondered. She then looked at Byleth, who was deeply asleep. A feeling of tranquility ran through her body the moment she saw him. She gently took the sword and placed it in front of them. "For now it doesn´t matter, there is nothing that can harm me here" she thought as she fell asleep again.


	21. The Conand Tower

**8/27 Verdant rain Moon**

"Edelgard, wake up"

She felt a hand touching her shoulder. When she opened her eyes she was face to face with him.

"The storm is giving us a break, we must return before it starts again"

"You are right" she said getting up, using the hand he was offering to her. The world above them was grey, covered in clouds. They remained silent, each of them lost in their own thoughts.

Edelgard was intrigued by her Teacher´s sword. The sword that was meant for her due to the experimentations she had endured had seemingly chosen her Professor as its owner. Despite barely touching it, she had felt that a strange power was hiding its surface. The fact that the monsters that had destroyed her family were so eager to made her use it casted in her doubts about the real properties of the sword. She looked at her Professor. He was apparently fine, but she couldn´t really now if he was pretending or not.

They finally arrived to the village with a no soul to be seen outside.

"I guess we have arrived earlier than expected"

"In 30 minutes I want all of them outside, we will be the vanguard in the attack and I want each of them leading their group of soldiers. I will go to talk to Gilbert. I leave you the task to tell the rest"

"Leave it to me Professor"

She entered the house where they were staying. When she entered the dormitory of the girls everyone looked asleep until a voice whispered to her ear.

"Edie, I was worried about you"

"Dorothea, don´t surprised me like that" she replied to her, slightly surprised.

"Where have you been?"

"I just had trouble sleeping and decided to take a walk"

"A walk with this weather? It was pretty bad last night and you don´t seem to be particularly affected"

"I came across with the Professor and we were in our way to return when the storm released all its force and we weren´t able to return"

"Are you saying that you spent the night with our handsome Professor? You must tell me everything!"

"Don´t take out of context things Dorothea" she said feeling her cheeks getting hot "And please be quiet" she implored her.

"You get so cute when you get embarrassed Edie" Dorothea giggled. "If I were you I would have taken an opportunity"

"Do you like the Professor, Dorothea?" she didn´t want to admit it, but she felt a strange tension waiting for her answer.

"If I must say if like him or hate him I guess that I like him. Don´t worry Edie, I won´t steal it from you"

"Stop implying things Dorothea"

"Just joking" she said with a singing voice.

"The Professor wants everyone to get ready in 30 minutes. Wake the rest of them I will tell the guys too. I beg you to remain silent. I wouldn´t like Hubert to know about yesterday´s events"

"A secret talk then" Dorothea smiled. "Don´t worry Edie, this little secret is safe with me, we are friends after all"

"Friends" she thought, a warmth feeling extending through her body.

"Thank you Dorothea" she smiled to her.

She then left the room and knocked the door in front of her. A few moments later an already prepared Hubert opened the door, bowing at her as he saw her"

"Good morning Lady Edelgard"

"We have to be outside in 30 minutes. Orders from the Professor"

"Understood. Linhardt will be the most troublesome, but I might persuade him to change quickly for his own good" he chuckled.

"Don´t be too harsh on them"

…

The students gathered around him, already wearing their battle armors. Even Linhardt was ready, although he was muttering something about unnecessary threats.

"Good morning everyone, today we will have the battle against the bandits. Our objective is to eliminate them and recover the Lance of Ruin. Each one of you will be in charge of a battalion. We will be at the vanguard and there is only one way to access the Tower so expect resistance from our enemy"

"Understood Professor"

"Fight with decision and victory will be ours, but don´t put yourselves at unnecessary risks. Don´t leave holes between your formation and we will get over this quickly. Now march!"

….

"Archers above us!"

"Don´t worry I will handle this" shouted Byleth releasing the power of the Sword of the Creator. He used the sword as a whip, impaling one of the archers and bringing him down to his death, smashing him to the ground. He did the same to the rest of the archers until they started to retreat.

To his right Hubert was casting spells that were causing havoc between the armored units of their enemies. To his left Edelgard was leading her troops to break a counterattack that the thieves were preparing.

"Healing over here!" shouted Caspar

"Said and done" could hear Linhardt´s voice.

One brigand was charging at him when he was stopped by Felix´s quick attack, swiftly finishing him off.

"They fight like cornered rats, disgusting. Show me your strength with your sword!"

Byleth rushed to Felix´s position and parried one of the thieves, taking his life with a swift counterattack.

Looking at the numbers of the enemy troops, it seemed that Miklan had established his own army. They were slowly advancing, but Byleth knew they had to be careful; there were lots of blind spots at each corner they crossed.

"It seems that my brother has been really busy gathering his own army. If he didn´t try to kill me he could have been a good general"

"There is no time to talk about ifs Sylvain" said Felix. "This is a battle"

"I know, I know" he said as he pierced a thief through the heart. "I was just thinking aloud"

Byleth was constantly checking the state of his students. He was relieved that everyone seemed uninjured, but he couldn´t neglect the threat ahead them.

"Reinforcements from behind" he could hear Gilbert´s shout. "We will hold them! Continue your advance Professor!"

They continued their advance. He could sense that they were almost at their objective.

"They are retreating, the cowards" grinned Felix

"They can´t withstand our force" smiled Ferdinand.

"You mean that they can´t withstand Lady Edelgard´s might"

"Hubie now there is no time for…AH!"

A group of thieves suddenly appeared through a semi collapsed door.

"An ambush!" thought Byleth, he rushed to Dorothea´s position but he arrived too late, she was bleeding heavily from her stomach.

Killing the thieves around him he rushed to her.

"I didn´t expect it to end like this" said, her face growing pale.

"Stay with me Dorothea!"

He searched for his wound and applied the magic he had learned at the monastery, but nothing happen. When she looked at her eyes she realized she was already gone. "Magic can heal all kind of injuries, but it can´t return someone from death" he recalled Rhea´s explanation the first time they were practicing magic.

Looking at Dorothea´s lifeless eyes he felt an intense wrath. Using his divine pulse he returned back in time and rushed to Dorothea´s position. The moment the door was opening he released his entire wrath with a fire spell.

The area in front of him turned into a living hell. The air was filled with screams and the smell of burnt flesh. Thieves covered in flames were running, trying to extinguish the flames. Some of them jumped to their deaths in a desperate attempt to end their suffering. He silently approached one of the few that were able to avoid the flames.

"We surrender!" he said one of them, dropping his axe. Using the Sword of the Creator, he sliced him in half. Seeing they had no other choice the survivors charged at him and they were slaughtered as well.

"Impressive" he could hear Felix´s voice.

"You are again covered in blood Professor. I´m about to throw up" said Linhardt.

"Be careful Dorothea, I don´t want to see you hurt"

"Thank you" she said, her face paler than usual.

"You mustn´t abuse the power of the Sword!" Sothis shouted to him. "That amount of wrath you have just had. It was like an explosion of energy. I know that you wanted to protect your student, but there is something strange with this sword" Byleth looked at the Sword of the Creator. It was unnaturally clean, and the light emanating from it was brighter than usual. "You are right" he thought sheathing it.

….

Edelgard was shocked by the slaughter in front of her. She wasn´t the only one.

"I didn´t expect the Professor to have such powerful magic he said, looking at one of the burnt corpses. There are areas that are partially melted." said Hubert, a surprised look on his face.

Edelgard was also surprised by her Teacher´s expression. She had never seen him with such a scary face. "I didn´t expect he could manifest such anger". Her eyes then moved to the Sword of the Creator, which was shining stronger than usual, yet it was spotless. "Definitively it's not a normal relic" she thought. She advanced to his position as Byleth sheathed its sword, unsheathing a normal sword.

"Are you right my Teacher?"

"I´m fine. I just have the feeling that I mustn´t abuse the Sword of the Creator"

"Wise decision, even without using that sword you are a more than capable warrior" she said feeling a bit of relieve. "We must keep pressing forward and we must be careful about future ambushes"

"You are right" he said. "Check your surroundings!" he shouted "There could be more enemies hiding around us!"

As he said, they had to endure several attempts of ambush, but they succeeded at repelling them. They were starting to arrive to the highest level of the tower. Before they could arrive to its entrance they were welcomed by a rain of arrows. The remaining archers of Miklan´s army were preparing a last line stand against them.

"Take cover behind the rocks" she shouted, blocking some arrows with her shield.

"We need a counterattack!" he could hear her Teacher´s voice a few meters from her.

"Bernadetta! Shoot at will! Hubert and Dorothea, cover us with your magic"

"Understood!"

The air was suddenly filled by arrows and magic and the screams of those who got hit by them. After a few minutes of exchange she and her Professor leaded the spear head against the bandits' formation.

"Cursed nobles!" said a red haired man in the middle of the enemy formation. "All of you want to steal what is mine by right! I will kill you all!"

"Take it easy brother" said Sylvain, rushing to their position "Just be a good boy and return the lance to me. I promise I won´t tell our father"

"You ruined my life! I won´t let you take it, I will kill you by my own hands"

"It´s not my fault that I was born with a Crest and you weren´t, you know?" he sighed. "You are just delusional if you think that I am the source of all your problems. You have dug your own grave, brother"

Their forces clashed against Miklan´s last line of defense. Her Professor was the first to clash against Miklan, who was holding the Lance of Ruin.

"Be careful Professor! That´s a Hero´s relic"

Miklan was using the Lance of Ruin with great strength, but it didn´t release any glow. "Being crestless means that he can´t use the lance to its full strength" she thought.

…

"Miklan, we should surrender" cried one of his soldiers.

"Fool, there is no way they will forgive us. Die fighting or die like a coward!"

Taking advantage of that moment of distraction, Byleth discharged a potent blow against Miklans. Next to him Sylvain was trying to poke his brother with his own lance. The fight was already turning in their favor.

"You aren´t really bad" Miklan smirked to him, catching his breath, when something strange happened.

The orb of the Lance of Ruin started to glow with an ominous appearance. A strange substance started to emanate from the orb, reaching Miklan´s body.

"What the hell?!" realizing what was happening Miklan tried to drop the lance, but he couldn´t, dark tentacles grapping his hand. In a few seconds he was covered in the black substance.

The surviving members of Miklan´s gang started to disband the moment they saw what was happening.

"Stay closer to me, all of you!" shouted Byleth.

A beast emerged from the dark substance, Miklan and the Lance of Ruin nowhere to be seen. The beast was covered in white spikes with glowing red eyes covered by a bone like shell. The monster picked one of the remaining thieves and started devouring it in front of them.

"Is that thing my brother?"

"It doesn´t matter what he was, if we don´t kill it we will find our end here" said Edelgard. She then looked to Byleth with a decisive glare in her eyes. "Under your command Professor!"

"Be careful Byleth" said Sothis inside his head. "That´s not an ordinary beast, I can sense an incredible strength within it, we will need to weaken its defenses if we want to destroy it"

"Hubert, Dorothea, Linhardt and Bernadetta support us from the distance. The rest wedge formation behind me!"

Spells and arrows were starting to impact against the beast, which was advancing towards them. Byleth unsheathed the Sword of the Creator and used it as a whip to draw the monster´s attention.

It worked. The beast roared and tried to impale him with its horn, but it was avoided by Byleth. The rest of the students were starting to surround the beast with their squadrons. Avoiding another attack from the beast Byleth used the Sword to climb a column. When the monster smashed it he climbed to its back.

"Attack all at once now!"

Spells, arrows and close combat weapons impacted against the beast shell, which was in a frenzy state trying to shake him off its back.

"The defenses of the beast are lowering! It's the time to strike back!" shouted Sothis.

Byleth jumped to the beast head and attacked the weakest point of the beast, its eyes. The moment the Sword of the Creator cut through it the monster howled in an unnatural way. Its howl was a mixture between a beast and a human. Without a second to lose Byleth jumped to the other side of the beast face, leaving it blind.

Critically injured the beast stood on its legs. With a horrific roar it released a rain of spines from its body, killing some mercenaries and soldiers of the church in the process. The beast then smashed the ground with all its strength sending Byleth flying.

The impact made him feel dizzy, blood dripping from its head. The monster, guiding by its smell was approaching him its mouth wide open.

"Stay away from him!"

Edelgard was standing in front of him with its axe. Using the power of her crest she released a brutal blow to the beast´s face, blocking its advance. But it wasn´t enough to kill it. With a surprising speed the monster grabbed her. It was about to devour her when Byleth jumped into its mouth.

"It´s over!"

Using all his strength Byleth pierced through the beast´s palate, he felt an intense pain on its left arm but he pressed forward. The beast released Edelgard from its grip as its pain was unbearable. Then the beast closed its jaws.

….

"The Professor has been devoured?" she could hear someone´s voice.

"It cannot be! It can´t end like this!" she thought. "Kill it, we have to save him!" she commanded.

The blind beast was standing again on its legs. It looked as it was about to make an attack when it suddenly stood still. A faint light was emanating from its chest. The light was getting brighter and then it appeared; the tip of a sword. The sword of the Creator slowly cut through the beast´s flesh. It looked like the first rays of sun cutting through the darkness of the night. An instant later her Teacher jumped to the ground, the Sword of the Creator on his right hand and the Lance of Ruin on his left. The beast collapsed behind him and started to dissolve, leaving Miklan´s corpse in a pitiful state behind.

She rushed to his place. "My Teacher, that was impressive!" she stopped suddenly when she realized that her Professor´s left arm was pierced by one of the beast´s fangs. He was breathing heavily.

"Linhardt come over here! The Professor needs healing!" She approached him and embraced him "You will get fine, my Teacher I promise"

Linhardt almost lost its consciousness when he saw the injury that Byleth had sustained.

"Don´t stay still, the Professor needs your help"

"It will serve no purpose if we don´t extract first the beast´s fang"

"Edelgard" said looking at her, "Pull it out for me"

"It´s going to hurt"

"I know, that´s why I´m asking you"

Edelgard took her dagger and cut a part of her cape giving it to him.

"Thank you" he said, putting it in his mouth.

Edelgard then pulled the fang out with all her strength. She needed various tries and she could feel Byleth´s hand grabbing her, but she continued until the fang was out of her Teacher´s body. Linhardt then applied his white magic in the area affected but he did so with his eyes closed. When he finished, the area of the wound was of a different color to its surroundings but it was closed.

"You must rest for a few days Professor, even with magic the wound may open again if you make too much effort"

"Thank you Linhardt" said Byleth, using Edelgard to get up. "Sylvain, take the Lance, it's yours after all. It´s over, good job everyone, we will be returning now"

….

They left the Tower. They had some casualties between the Church members and the mercenaries, but all of her classmate were alive and her Professor and Gilbert too.

They were welcomed at the village by its inhabitants that seemed relieved to know that the thieves attacking them were gone for good.

"Good job Professor" said Gilbert approaching them. "I will stay here a few more days to make sure that there are not more menaces roaming the area. You can return with your students. If you don´t mind I will keep the mercenaries and the soldiers of the Church with me"

"Understood, we will be leaving now"

"You can take these horses; they are fresh so your return will be faster"

"Thank you"

Byleth was about to climb one of the horses when she stopped him.

"Professor, it would be wiser to avoid unnecessary efforts, you can ride with me if you want"

"You are right" he sat behind her, his hands slightly touching her waist. She felt a bit of warmth in her face, but she was relieved he couldn´t see her.

"Follow us" shouted Byleth. "To the monastery"

They left behind the village and headed to the south, a gentle breeze coming to them.

"This battle has ended, but there is too much we don´t know yet" commented Edelgard.

"You are right about it. I will ask the archbishop about it. You are free to accompany me when we arrive"

"I certainly will, but rest for now my Teacher"

"Thank you for worrying about it"

"It's only natural my Teacher, you are of great importance to me"

"You too" he said whispering to her ear.

….

**8/31 Verdant rain Moon**

They arrived to the monastery the last day of the month. They were faster than when they started their expedition but Edelgard had advised him to avoid making unnecessary efforts.

When they arrived most of the students went straight to the baths, exhausted of their journey.

"Edelgard, Sylvain I would like both of you to accompany me"

"Of course my Teacher"

"Me? Why?"

"I have to report the archbishop about our findings and as one of the most affected persons by these events I think you should accompany me"

"You are right about that, I will bring the lance then"

They headed to the audience room, where Rhea was already waiting, apparently informed about their arrival.

"You have done a wonderful job Professor, I am sure that the Goddess itself has given you her protection. I am glad to hear that no one of the students lost its life."

"We had some casualties within the ranks of the Church"

"Don´t blame yourself about their deaths. They died for a just cause."

"Miklan is dead. He turned into a monster by the Lance of ruin"

"I feared that something like that would happen. That´s the punishment that the Goddess prepares for those considered unworthy of her blessing"

He could sense that both Edelgard and Sylvain were tense hearing Rhea´s explanation.

"Did you know about that?"

"I did, that´s why I wanted to recover the lance as soon as possible. I beg you to restrain of telling the tragic events that unfolded in the Tower. The truth would cause panic across all of Fódlan"

"Does it mean that it may happen to me too?"

"You don´t have to worry about that Professor, the Sword of the Creator has chosen you as its rightful user. You have nothing to fear from it. I beg you to give me the Lance; I will make sure that it's returned to its rightful owner when the situation stabilizes in the north"

Byleth looked at Sylvain and then at Edelgard, when he returned his gaze to the archbishop he had already made his decision.

…

"She knew all along and her face hasn´t changed a bit" thought Edelgard, looking at the archbishop. "And now she is asking for the lance"

"No"

She was surprised by her Teacher´s response. She looked at him, but his expression didn´t change a bit.

"May I ask why?" The archbishop was visibly upset by her Teacher´s answer, her warmth tone already disappeared.

"Sylvain is the heir of House Gautier, he had fought alongside me and he has proven his courage in battle. I can´t see no one else more capable than him to take care of the lance. The decision is up to him"

The archbishop looked at him for a moment, her eyes colder than usual.

"I will follow your advice this time Professor, as recognition of your services for the Church. You will come here tomorrow to be informed about your future assignment. You are all free to leave now"

They left the room and remained silent for a while. The first one to talk was Sylvain.

"Professor, you have surprised me, but I thank you. I will take good care of it. You can count with me if you ever need my help. For now I would like to take a bath. I don´t enjoy being covered in mud, even if it is from my own country. Bye Professor, Edelgard" said Sylvain wavering a hand to them.

"Professor I would like to talk with you" she said, opening the room to an empty room. "Can I take some of your time?"

"Of course Edelgard"

They entered the room. When she made sure that no one was around there she looked at him.

"I must admit that I´m surprised by your response my Teacher, was it right to refuse the archbishop´s command?"

"I did what I thought was right. The lance belongs to Sylvain and he had already paid a high price for it"

"You mean the death of Miklan. It is regretful that someone´s existence can be conditioned by the existence of a crest. Miklan was a criminal, but he wasn´t useless, given the right circumstances he could have lead armies in battle. The crests might grant extra capabilities, but a skillful person can overcome those advantages with enough talent. Hubert and Dorothea are both crestless, yet they have high capabilities. Don´t you think Professor that the world would be a better place without crests?"

"I respect your ideals, but the world as it is won´t accept them easily"

"You are right that it´s just wishful thinking as long as the world remains as it is, but things won´t necessary stay the same eternally. The archbishop knew that people can be turned into monsters by the relics, yet she told us nothing about it. What kind of Goddess could make such punishment to humanity?"

She stopped talking when she heard someone coming to them. It was Hubert.

"Professor, I would like to talk with Lady Edelgard about a private matter, may I have your permission"

He looked at her one more time and nodded.

"I will see you tomorrow Edelgard, I will think about what you just told me"

"Rest well Professor"

When Hubert made sure that the Professor had left, he looked at her with a serious expression on his face.

"You are playing a dangerous game Lady Edelgard"

"I told you before, with my strength alone I won´t succeed. My path is full of obstacles and the more help I can get the better. Besides, if trusting the Professor allows me to strengthen my position against them so be it"

"That´s just a bet, a dangerous one I must say. The Professor´s capabilities are surprising, but that makes him more of a menace. It may be wiser to get rid of it"

"Don´t even consider that. Even if he doesn´t support our cause he has done nothing against us. Furthermore, he holds no position of political power so his death would only catch the attention of the archbishop and the blade breaker."

"I´m only worried about your wellbeing Lady Edelgard. I will respect your wish as you command." He bowed to her before leaving here alone.

"Is it wrong to want him to join me?" she asked herself, hope and reality clashing inside her.


	22. The land of the golden deer

**9/1 Horsebow moon**

Byleth was heading to the audience room when he came across with his father.

"Son, it´s been a while" he said rubbing his hair.

"How was your last mission with the Church, father?"

"Not too bad, but we haven´t caught all the rotten apples" he sighted. "There has always been a kind of rivalry between the different branches of the Church, but a rebellion… I guess that the nobles and the Church are similar on that area. And you son?"

"We were sent to take care of a group of bandits which was causing havoc in the north. Its leader, a former member of house Gautier, had stolen a relic from his family. We defeated them all, but he turned into a monster"

"A monster you say?" said his father, with a serious expression on his face. "Did you explain that to Rhea?"

"Yes, she said that we should keep the truth to ourselves to avoid spreading chaos to Fódlan."

"And you are here telling me" he laughed. "But thank you, this is a serious matter. The north is as unstable as ever, there are still rebels in the west and humans are turning into beasts. I don´t know if these events are related, but we have to remain cautious"

"You are right father"

"Let´s go to meet Rhea, I have to report what´s going on in the west too"

"Good morning Professor Byleth, Jeralt. I am glad to see both father and son together once again" she smiled to both of them as if the events of the day before hadn´t happened.

"The rebellion of the Western Church is under control Lady Rhea" his father said bowing to her. "However, we will need more time until every responsible person is punished."

"I thank you for taking the command of the Church´s troops. I will pray to the Goddess for a quick solution of this conflict. For this month I have a new task for you Professor Byleth, but I think that is better if you hear it from the source itself. Please come in"

Lorenz entered the room and made a flamboyant greeting to all of them.

"Good morning Lady Rhea, Professor, Sir Jeralt. I´ve just received a letter from my father, the duke of Gloucester. A minor noble of the alliance, Acheron, is causing some trouble to my father and he wants to settle such dispute the most private as possible."

"You mean a skirmish right?" said Jeralt

"Yes, you are right. I planned to go alone, but with the Professor´s help things may go smoother"

"Your task for this month will be helping Lorenz in this quarrel. It is the duty of the Church to provide help to resolve conflicts when asked for. If you don´t mind Jeralt, I would like you to accompany your son, I´m sorry for taking you too much of your time and I think that this would be a good opportunity to share some time together"

"Really? Thank you Rhea, I really appreciate it" he then smiled to him. "Like the old times, battling and walking"

"Thank you for your support" said Lorenz "I would like to leave as soon as possible, if everything goes right we will return here in a week"

"I hope for the best" Rhea smiled to them.

They left the room. Lorenz excused himself saying that he needed to prepare his armor and left them alone.

"I feared that I had to do another mountain of paperwork, but I guess that once in awhile luck smiles to me" he laughed. "I wonder how much the students had progressed under your command"

"You will be proud of them" he said with a light smile on his face.

"If you are smiling that means that there are going to be some promising results" he smiled. "I will prepare my equipment too. You should go talk with the students"

"I will right now"

He headed to the Black Eagle´s classroom. Edelgard was already sitting at the front of the class.

"Good morning Professor, I guess that you already know what´s going to be this month´s task"

"I do. We will be heading to Alliance Territory; we have to resolve a dispute between nobles."

"I must admit that the endless quarrels between nobles are troublesome, but you seen unaffected by then, may I ask why?"

"My father will accompany us"

"Oh!" Edelgard was surprised by his revelation. "Seeing the blade breaker in action will be a priceless experience to me. I feel honored"

"He is looking forward to see the progress of all of you under my command"

"I promise I won´t disappoint you my Teacher and I will make sure that everyone fulfills their role correctly"

"I wouldn´t expect less" he said, patting her head.

The rest of the students started to arrive; the energetic Caspar was the first of them.

"Morning Professor!" shouted Caspar.

"I had to spend hours to clean all the mud of our expedition" complained Dorothea. "I hope that this time we will get something easier"

"Knowing him I have no hope, I don´t like that smile on your face at all Professor" sighed Linhardt

"I want to fight, but I don´t like the cold" said Petra

"You don´t have to worry this time Petra, we are going to the east"

"The east? That means that we will be going to the Alliance" pointed out Ferdinand.

"It seems that you know how to use a map. As expected of your background" laughed Hubert.

"I´ve only been one night at my room and we are already preparing to leave again Professor? That´s too much!" complained Bernadetta.

"But you like taking care of the horses, right Bernie?" said Dorothea

"We will be heading to the Alliance, where we will aid Lorenz to solve a regional dispute between his father and a noble called Acheron" continued Byleth

"This is going to be fun" smiled Ferdinand.

"On this occasion my father will be accompanying us, so I expect that you will do your best"

"We won´t let you down Professor" smiled Dorothea.

"The blade breaker? I´m already excited" shouted Caspar.

"Look what you have done Professor. Now Caspar won´t shut up for a week" said Linhardt

"An interesting turn of events" smiled Hubert

"We will leave the monastery tomorrow morning, don´t neglect preparing your equipment. We will meet at the entrance."

The class continued as usual. When the bells started to ring everyone left the class to prepare for the upcoming expedition. He was packing his books when he sensed a presence behind him.

"Ey Teach, I´ve heard that you will be going to the Leicester Alliance. Can I come with you? Sounds like fun."

"I don´t see a problem with that"

"In that case I want to join too" said Lysithea, walking to them. "I want to thank you for training with me and I think that helping you in your task is the best way to achieve so"

"I´m counting on you"

"You won´t be disappointed" Lysithea said with a smile on her face.

"You are too popular for your own good Teach" said Claude. "I´m glad that we will be enjoying some real life combat at your side"

"We will be leaving tomorrow at dawn. Be prepared. We will be at the entrance of the monastery"

"There is no need to ask for it Professor, I will be prepared"

"Me too, I´m looking forward our school trip Teach" said Claude with a teasing smile.

…

**9/2**

Byleth was already wearing his travel clothes when he left his room. He headed to the gates of the monastery, where his father was already waiting.

"Good morning son" he said, rubbing his hair. "The rainy season is already leaving, I´m confident that we won´t have much problems regarding the weather when we march to the east"

"I think the same. My students wouldn´t be too amused if we had rain again"

"Are you getting use to this kind of life, Byleth?"

Byleth looked at him. A few months had already passed since he started teaching at the monastery. At first he was confused with the turn of the events, but he had eventually grown fond of his students. He didn´t feel uncomfortable anymore.

"I´m enjoying it"

"I see" he smiled. "Let´s see what kind of students you have trained"

The first of the students to arrive was Edelgard, accompanied by Lysithea.

"It is a pleasure to travel alongside you Sir Jeralt"

"You can just call me Jeralt. No need to be so formal. Is that little girl your sister?"

"No and I´m not a kid" answered a bit irritated Lysithea

"My bad"

Claude and Lorenz were the next to arrive. Claude was wearing practical clothes to travel, but Lorenz was wearing a pompous coat with a complete design of roses.

"Morning everyone. Let´s get this done"

When the rest of the black eagles arrived they crossed the gates and mounted the horses that were prepared for them.

"Do you want a race against this old man?" said Jeralt, grinning to him

"Of course father" he said, a light smile on his face.

"Ey Teach! Don´t run away from us!"

"Everyone faster, we can´t lose sight of our Professor"

Like that they started their journey, recalling their past.

…..

The sun was starting to set when they stopped.

"We will prepare our camp here" Jeralt said

"Understood father. We will need a fire. Edelgard and Petra, use your axes to chop some wood. The rest help us preparing the tents"

They dismounted the horses and started to do their respective tasks.

"It feels like it was yesterday" observed his father.

"I have the same feeling". For a brief time they were returning to their former routine. It had only been a few months since their lives changed, yet it felt like a completely different world.

"Your students are doing well" he said, looking at their focused faces. "You have a gift to command if you have achieved some like this with nobles and commoners at the same time"

"I´ve learnt from the best I guess"

Jeralt laughed to that. "You are getting more talkative, don´t you? I wish she were here to see you grow"

Hearing that, Byleth felt a pinch of pain inside him. "I´m sorry"

"You have nothing to feel sorry about. Even if I had known the outcome I would have never regretted having you" he said, rubbing his hair. "How about we do some fishing? We could give your dear students a good dinner"

"Sounds great to me father"

When they finished the camp they headed to the river that was a mere meters away from their camp and they started fishing, talking from time to time about the past and the present.

….

"Is it me or the Professor is smiling?" commented Dorothea next to her.

"He is his father after all" but Edelgard had also noticed that her Teacher was smiling more often since the start of the journey. Even if they could only be considered shy smiles at best she was happy to see him like that. "Put the wood over there Petra"

"Understood!"

"He has changed a bit, for the better. It may be thanks to us"

"You may be right Dorothea"

"No need to thank me Edelgard, Dorothea" said Claude joining their conversation with a smile on his face.

"I see that you are really modest Claude"

"I must admit that I feared for the wellbeing of Teach when he chose to teach you, but I was wrong."

"If you say it like that it doesn´t sound like a compliment. Thank you though"

"Why did you want to come with the Professor, Claude?" Dorothea asked

"I wanted to see him in action again. It´s been a while since the last time I saw him fighting. Besides, if we are going to the Leicester Alliance it would be rude if I didn´t show him our wonderful country"

"Anyway Claude, don´t skip your duty and help us mounting the tents"

"Touché"

They finished preparing the tents. It was already dark when her Teacher and Jeralt returned from the river, both holding buckets full of fish.

"This is our dinner, nothing better than eating a fish that you have fished yourself, right Byleth?"

"You are right about that father" said Byleth with a faint smile on his face. Seeing his smile, she couldn´t avoid smiling too.

…..

"Byleth, do you want to take a walk with me?"

The students were already in their tents, only him standing next to the campfire.

"Of course father"

They started to walk aimlessly next to the river; only the sound of the flowing water could be heard.

"Being outside it's really a refreshing experience from time to time. Sometimes I think that we should have headed to the Holy Kingdom to avoid all these problems, especially Alois"

"It would have been more boring"

"You really are enjoying this" he laughed. "I wasn´t sure at first, but you are really honest about it. What has made you change so much?"

"My students. They are so different to each other, yet I can´t avoid worrying about their wellbeing and happiness"

"They really treat you as one more of the group. I always thought that most of the students there would be snobs, but I have to change my opinion about that. If you ever change your opinion we can leave, don´t worry about Rhea, she will eventually understand"

"Thank you father, but I think that I´m fine as it is right now"

"Like father, like son I guess. That place holds a special place in my heart since the day I met your mother. I´m growing too nostalgic, I guess that I´m getting old"

"How did you fall in love with her?" He had already talked about it in front of her tomb, but he felt the need to hear again from her.

"I was serving in the knights of Seiros when I first met her. She and another young boy called Aelfric were always waiting for the stories of my adventures around the world. When she told me she had never been to the outside world I decided to bring her a part of it every time I left the monastery. I guess that seeing her smile was what made me fall in love with her. That and her eyes full of honesty. You really look like her." He said, with a nostalgic expression. "I promise you that no matter what I will protect you son"

"I will always do the same for you father. No matter the challenge we will get through it together"

Jeralt rubbed his hair with a smile on his face. They remained silent for a few moments until they started their return to the camp. There was no need of words when they had each other.

…

**9/5**

"We are finally in the lands of my father" announced Lorenz "Be careful from now on. I am sure that Acheron is already preparing his troops"

"These kinds of skirmishes are the norm in the territories of the Alliance" sighed Claude "I guess that the greed of some people has no limits"

"We have a couple of rivers a few miles ahead. We can use it as a defensive wall against our enemy. Let´s try to arrive before the enemy arrives" said Jeralt

"Preparing battle formations!" shouted Byleth.

They marched as fast as possible to the rivers. They had just arrived when the first soldiers of Acheron started to arrive.

"Get out of our way kids"

"Do I look like a kid to you?" grinned Jeralt. "Do yourself a favor and retreat"

"Are you blind?" said a medium aged man with blonde hair. He then looked at Lorenz. "It seems that the count has planned the same to resolve this territorial dispute. Capture the son, the rest I don´t care if they are killed"

"Let´s make a demonstration to your students"

"Like the old times" smiled Byleth to him.

The enemy troops were approaching, but the terrain advantage was on their side. Spells and arrows started to cause havoc between the enemy lines. Byleth was particularly impressed by the strength of Lysithea´s spells.

Some of their enemies were trying to outflank them so Byleth and Jeralt went to meet them. A mage tried to cast a fire spell on him, after he avoided the attack he reciprocating setting him on fire. His father was sending his foes flying, not even the heavy armored units capable of enduring his blows. Edelgard and Petra were leading their advance as Ferdinand and Caspar checked their surroundings.

"Acheron you will regret rebelling against my father!"

"That´s yet to be seen, little boy" He then released a potent spell against the bridge that Byleth and the others were crossing. The impact and subsequent explosion of the spell partially destroyed it.

"We have to cross it quickly!" shouted his father riding his horse to the other end of the bridge.

"Cross the bridge now!"

They were almost there when a second spell impacted the bridge, making it starting to collapse. Byleth looked around him, but he didn´t see Edelgard.

"She has fallen to the water!"

Without a second of doubt he jumped into the river.

Cold hit his body with violence. Opening his eyes he found her, sinking into the bottom of the river, her hair moving in an ethereal way. He reached for her hand and using the power of his crest he returned with her to the surface. When they broke the surface of the water, Edelgard was breathing heavily next to him, her arms clinging to him with incredible strength. He pulled her to the river bank and gently placed her on the ground. The skirmish around them was already arriving to an end.

"Thank you…my Teacher" said Edelgard still heavily breathing. "You have saved my live once again"

"I´m sorry I couldn´t grab you earlier." He said, applying magic to dry her clothes. "There is nothing to fear now. The battle is over. Edelgard…"

"Yes my Teacher?"

"You must learn to swim. I wouldn´t forgive myself if I were to lose you by something like that. I will teach you"

"I´m not sure if I will be able to overcome this fear"

"You will, I promise you. I won´t let you drown ever again"

She looked directly into his eyes.

"It´s a promise then, I thank you sincerely for reaching for me" she said a genuine smile on her face.

Byleth shivered to the look of it, but he was sure that that wasn´t related to his soaking wet clothes.

…

"I surrender, I surrender! No need to be so harsh!"

"You were trying to kill us. Do you think we are a bunch of idiots?!" shouted Jeralt, his eyes full of fury.

"You have committed a treasonous act Acheron." Said Lorenz, a serious expression on his face. "Such behavior cannot be lightly forgiven. You will have to pay a price"

"I will give everything I can if you don´t kill me. I promise to never rebel again"

"Your words are worth nothing" said Claude "The fact that you are a member of this very Alliance is disgusting. The rebellion was committed against your family, Lorenz. The final decision is up to you"

"Here are my conditions. Your forces will be disbanded. A tenth part of your income will be assumed by House Gloucester. The lands surrounding these rivers will be recognized to perpetuity as the propriety of my House and your relic will be confiscated and returned to its rightful owner"

"How did you know I have it?"

"You aren´t the only one with good contacts. We were only silent about it because it would have been quite a scandal, but there is no need to hide it anymore. Hand over the relic"

"That´s asking too much. I can give you six mills in exchange for retaining the relic"

"I am afraid that you have misunderstood. What I am saying is not up to negotiation. Accept it or your corpse will rot in this river"

"That´s outrageous. The execution of a member of the Alliance cannot be allowed without a voting between the different houses!"

"You are right about that" said Claude "But House Riegan can allow this kind of decision when there is unjustified assault to the lands of other members of the council"

"House Riegan is not here!"

"You must be an ignorant. I am the heir of house Riegan, my name is Claude. I am afraid that the fishes will suffer a poor digestion, but I agree with your proposition Lorenz"

"I will make sure that the river stays clean afterward"

"Stop! Understood! I will agree with your conditions!"

"Your word has no value until you have written it. Bring him to my father" ordered Lorenz

Byleth was used to that kind of interactions between nobles, but he couldn´t avoid feeling surprise by Claude´s change.

"I guess that everyone has a public face and a private one" observed Sothis. "Those are the rules of this world. A ruthless world"

"Professor, thank you for assisting me in this task" said Lorenz "It would be an honor if you and the rest could accompany me to my father´s castle"

"I have no reason to oppose"

"Then follow me, all of you"

As they were following Lorenz´s guiding, Byleth checked the wellbeing of his students. They had no visible injuries. The student he was worried the most was Edelgard, but seeing her accompanied by Hubert made him restrain from approaching her. He didn´t want to cause any trouble.

He was riding next to his father, who was completely silent.

"You really have the keys to be a good leader" he said finally breaking the silence between them.

"You don´t only give orders, but take risks for the wellbeing of the members of your group. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices to avoid further bloodshed, but the fact that you consider the life of your students equal to yours speaks volumes"

"I just want to protect them"

"And I´m sure that they are grateful for that. If all of them are safe is thanks to you"

They arrived to the castle of the Duke of Gloucester. They were received by the Duke himself, who looked extremely similar to his son.

"Lorenz I am pleased to see your return" he then saw Acheron "You are a fool Acheron, you might be dead by now if it weren´t by my son´s mercy"

"He has accepted my generous conditions to surrender father. We can discuss about it in a more private setting"

"You have done a good job, son" he then looked at the rest of the group. "House Gloucester appreciates the help of those who assist it in times of need. As friends of this House I beg you to stay a few days with us. It is only proper to reciprocate the help that all of you had given to us"

"We will gladly take your hospitality" said Jeralt

"The honor is mine, Sir Jeralt. Your legend precedes you" he looked to Byleth "You must be the Professor that my son has been talking about. I cannot thank you enough for your help. I hope that you will be able to recover your force here." "Rooms for our guests! All of you must be exhausted after the battle, feel yourselves at home"

Byleth went to the room reserved for him and placed his equipment. He was still worried about Edelgard. In fact he was worried about all of his students. He wanted them to live and fulfill their dreams, yet he feared that one day he might run out of luck.

"I´m sure you will fight to avoid such outcome, Byleth. I will gladly give you my power to save them, but you must realize that one day you might not be able to safe all of them."

"I will fight to avoid such future"

"I really appreciate your loyalty to your students. Seeing people like you make me consider that there are some wonderful people out there, even though there are also some rotten apples."

With nothing more to do he left his room.

…..

"Please, eat to your heart's content"

They were having dinner at the main hall of the castle. Lorenz was sitting next to his father, at the bottom of the table. Byleth, his father and his students were sitting in the middle. To his left he had his father and to his right was sitting Edelgard, who looked more relaxed than before. Hubert was sitting to her right and from time to time he could feel that he was looking at him, but he didn´t sense animosity in his eyes.

His dinner was full of dishes he hadn´t eaten in his life. Looking at him his father couldn´t avoid to laugh.

"Nobles can be at a times troublesome, but their food is good, no need to keep staring at it"

His father was right; the quality of the dishes was extraordinary. The opulence of the room was something to take into account too.

"Teach, you should stop looking around like that. It looks like you are seeing ghosts"

"Ghosts don´t exist Claude, there is no need to mention them" said Lysithea.

"My bad, let´s just enjoy the meal"

…

The dinner had already ended and he was preparing to return to his room when Hubert appeared in front of him.

"Professor, May I take some of your time?"

"I don´t mind Hubert"

"Then follow me"

He followed him to his room and waited to hear what he wanted to say to him.

"To be fair, I don´t trust you, Professor, but words cannot express my gratitude for saving Lady Edelgard" he bowed to him.

"I told you I will protect all of you"

"You are a really interesting person Professor" he chuckled. "It doesn´t matter how much I analyze you there is something that doesn´t make sense. If Lady Edelgard´s words must be trusted you are an honest being, yet I think that something is hiding below the surface"

"What do you mean?"

"You are surrounded by mysteries Professor. To be fair your mere existence is a mystery to me."

"I have told you that I don´t wish her any harm"

"Sometimes the worst dangers are hidden behind promises like that. She has already suffered enough. Anyway, even though you don´t have my trust you do have my gratitude for what you have done for her"

"If you ever need help, I will be here for you too" Byleth said patting his shoulder.

"Such proximity is a novelty to me" grinned Hubert. "That´s what I wanted to say. Now if you forgive me I have a letter to write"

"Of course, good night Hubert"

"He is starting to trust you" said Sothis

"It sounded the other way around"

"I suspect that his pride and personality makes him act like that, but the fact that he had expressed his gratitude forward you… I would have considered that impossible a few months ago"

"I don´t hate him. I hope we can get along"

"You may be able to, with enough time"

With these thoughts he went to his bed, the events of the day returning to his head. He didn´t know why, but every time that Edelgard´s face came to him he felt a slight ache inside his heart.


	23. The city of the merchants

**9/6 Horsebow moon**

Byleth changed to his usual clothes and headed to the castle´s dining room. Most of the students were having breakfast there, his father enjoying a big jar of beer.

"Morning Teach. The fried eggs are fantastic. You must try some" Claude said, offering him.

"Good morning Claude, thank you"

"Since we are already here I thought that it would be nice going to Derdriu, just a couple of days. I´m sure you will enjoy it" he said smiling to him.

"I don´t mind that proposal Professor" said Lorenz, who was sitting next to Claude. "You can stay here as long as you want, but I must admit that the capital has its own glamour. The roses that are sold there are otherworldly"

"Since we have already completed the task of this month we could go, son" said Jeralt, picking another jar of beer.

"I have no problem then"

"Then it´s settled, I promise you it's going to be nice. Oh, morning Edelgard"

"Good morning Claude, Byleth"

Edelgard had just arrived, accompanied by Hubert. She sat next to him. Recently, every time she spoke his name, he could feel a small aching in his chest.

"I have just convinced our Teach to go to Derdriu. You are invited if you want to go too."

"I wouldn´t risk leaving my Teacher alone with you once again" smiled Edelgad. "Besides, seeing the Leicester Alliance capital with my own eyes will be surely a great experience for me"

"I feel honored" laughed Claude. "Let´s finish breakfast for now. A journey must start with a full stomach"

"I will ask my father for fresh horses. You are also free to leave most of your belongings here; it will make our travel smoother"

"You are unexpectedly nice Lorenz"

"I will take it as a compliment Claude. House Gloucester knows how to reward its benefactors"

After communicating to the rest of the students their new plans, everyone returned to their rooms to prepare. Byleth was about to leave the dining room when Lorenz approached him.

"Professor, I was talking with my father yesterday. I proposed him to give you this as a present from house Gloucester." He said showing him Acheron´s relic. "I am not sure how it ended in Acheron´s hands, but I am sure that it will be safer with you. Please I beg you to keep it. You are free to use it as long as you want it"

"Thank you Lorenz, I will make sure to give it a good use"

"No need to thank me. I am just returning the favor. Now if you excused me, I would like to share a cup of tea with Ferdinand before we depart. You are invited if you want to come too"

"NO!" Sothis shouted inside him, making him startle.

"Are you ok, Professor? You look surprise"

"Don´t mind. I´m sorry, but I will be busy preparing my things"

"No problem, another opportunity will arise. See you later" he nodded to him

"No need to shout" he thought

"If it weren´t for me, you would have entered another endless conversation with those two. You should thank me. I´m more interested about the trip to the capital. A change of pace is always welcomed"

"I´m looking forward it too"

…

After leaving the Relic in his room he went to the stables, where some of his students were already waiting.

"It´s been a while since the last time I was in a big city, I can´t wait to arrive to Derdriu" Dorothea greeted him with a smile

"Brigid´s capital is surrounded by forests. It´s a good place to hunt and rest"

"I´m sure that Brigid´s nature must be otherworldly Petra" Dorothea smiled to her. "By the way, have you ever been to Derdriu?" asked him Dorothea.

"A few years ago due to a contract"

"This time take it as a leisure activity Teach" said Claude, joining their conversation. "Derdriu is a beautiful city that deserves to be visited at least once in a lifetime."

"You should visit Enbarr then Claude." said Edelgard, approaching them. "I´m sure you will also find it quite fascinating"

"I will surely do so. If we leave now we will be arriving to the capital when the sun sets. Let´s get started"

They left the castle when everyone arrived. The roads to the Alliance capital were in good state, so their journey wasn´t uncomfortable the slightest.

"Nice weather and nice company, I can´t ask for more Teach" said Claude riding beside him.

"Nice for the compliment Claude" said Lorenz joining them.

"I guess that you are also included Lorenz. You handled the situation quite well the other day"

"If I wasn´t able to deal with someone like Acheron the future of House Gloucester would be at risk. It wasn´t something remarkable"

Byleth kept silent hearing their chatting. He looked around him. Seeing their smiles he couldn´t avoid to feel happiness inside him.

"What are you thinking of?" asked to him Edelgard

"I was just happy to see everyone getting along"

"Me too" she smiled to him. "We will eventually follow different paths, but for the time being I´m enjoying it too."

"Even if you leave the monastery I hope that I can see you again"

"You don´t have to worry about that my Teacher, even when I leave the monastery I promise to come to visit you. I won´t let you turn into a fleeting memory"

Hearing those words made his heart ache with happiness.

"Thank you Edelgard, I really appreciate what you have just said"

"What are you talking about Teach, Edelgard?"

"Nothing in particular" said Edelgard, toying with her hair.

"If you say so. Teach, since we are going to the capital I want to show you tomorrow the market. Merchants from all around the world gather there, from Sreng to Morfis."

"From Brigid too?" asked Petra

"Of course Petra, I bet that you will be feeling at home for a while" Claude said to her with a gentle smile.

"We must ride faster then. I want to teach everyone about Brigid"

"Tomorrow is going to be a good day" laughed Claude.

…..

They arrived to Derdriu when the sun was starting to set. There were some soldiers at the gates of the city, but they quickly let them enter when they realized Claude´s identity.

"Welcome to Derdriu, the city of the merchants!" announced Claude. "Please, accompany me to House Riegan´s stronghold"

They rode through wide roads, crescent moon banners could be seen to their sides.

"A crescent moon" murmured Byleth.

"Time for a history exam Teach, why do you think there are these banners here?"

"It must be the Crescent moon war." Answered Byleth, recalling the information he had read at the library.

"Correct" Claude smiled to him. "The Crescent moon war marked the independence from the Holy Kingdom when the nobles of the area refused the rule of the heir of the archduke of Leicester. The Duke Riegan had a pivotal role during the war and he was elected as the leader of the newly built Alliance. Since then we have had our fair share of problems, but nothing like a war. And now we have arrived. Welcome everyone"

They had just arrived to a giant square. A magnificent building could be seen in the opposite site, well illuminated despite the time of the day. When they arrived to the gates the soldiers opened the door to let them enter.

"Feel yourselves at home"

"As expected from a city of merchant´s their leader is next to the market" commented Edelgard.

"You have a point there. The merchants trust security above everything else. This city was built by merchants for the merchants. House Riegan´s protects the city and merchants make the city prosper. Working together we are stronger, that´s my saying" He then looked to everyone. "Let´s enjoy a meal and rest for today. There are a lot of places I want all of you to see"

They crossed an inner garden with all kinds of exotic species and arrived to the dining room. They had just sat down around the table when servants started to arrive, carrying all kinds of dishes. Byleth could recognize a few of them, but the others were completely alien to him.

"That´s Almyran cuisine Teach." said Claude, noticing his stare to the dishes. "I think you will like it"

He tried it. It was spicy, but surprisingly tasty.

"It tastes great"

"I´m glad to hear that" said Claude with a sincere smile.

"I would prefer something sweeter." Said Lysithea.

"You can try some date fruits Lysithea, if you want to"

They continued chatting and eating to their hearts content.

….

"Now it´s time to go to sleep, each one has a room for their use. I hope you will find the stay comfortable"

"Finally, I just want to sleep" yawned Linhardt.

"You won´t ever change" sighed Caspar

"I fear the same about you Caspar"

"Thank you for your hospitality" said Edelgard.

"Good night everyone, sleep well" said Byleth before opening the door to his dorm.

….

**9/7**

It was still dark when Byleth opened his eyes. He changed his clothes and picked the note where he had written the student´s birthdays.

"So it is today" he thought.

He planned to buy something for Petra as today was her birthday. Since it was still early he planned to buy a present for her in the market before leaving with everyone.

He was about to leave the building when a familiar voice came to him.

"Good morning my Teacher. I see that you have woken up early too"

"I plan to buy a present for Petra, since it is her birthday and you?"

"It seems that we had the same intentions." Edelgard smiled to him. "In that case we could leave together to choose a suitable present for her"

"I see no problem with that"

They left together and headed to the market. The place was already in full activity, with merchants of all kind of places offering their products.

"I think she would be happy if we find something about Brigid" said Edelgard looking at the different products around them.

They walked through the market until they came across with a merchant that had a familiar corporal marking.

"Excuse me, are you from Brigid?" asked Edelgard

"I am, how did you know young lady?"

"I have a friend that has a similar symbol under her eye. We are looking for a present"

"Then you don´t need to do more search. I have everything related to Brigid"

The merchant showed them all kind of things, from furniture to stones that according to him were able to keep bad spirits at bay. However, his attention was caught by a hair ornament that had a striking feather attached to it. He extended his hand to pick it.

But what he picked was Edelgard´s hand. It looked like they both had the same thought.

"My Teacher…"

He looked at her and realized she was blushing.

"I´m sorry, I think we just had the same idea". He released her hand, although he sensed that a part of him was unwilling to do so.

"It doesn´t matter" she said, avoiding his eyes, her cheeks still slightly red.

After a while bargaining with the merchant they finally bought a pair of those hair ornaments.

"I´m sure she will be happy" said Edelgard with a confident smile.

"I think so"

They were returning when Byleth saw a candy stall.

"We could go there before returning. What do you think Edelgard?"

"Eating something sweet will surely be a good way to start our day"

"I´m sure that Lysithea will enjoy it too. You can bring her to this place later"

In the stall was working an elder woman, who smiled to them when they approached.

"Good morning youngsters. Are you searching for something sweet?"

"We are"

"You can try some of these. I´ve just made them"

Byleth took one of them and Edelgard did the same.

"They are fantastic" said Edelgard

"I´m glad to hear that" the elder woman seemed please with the compliment.

"We will take a pair of them" said Byleth.

"It will cost 500 coins and take this too" she said offering them a box full of dangos. "You are such a cute couple that I don´t mind giving you this box."

"W-We aren´t…"

"Thank you. You are very nice" said Byleth, accepting the gift.

"…!"

"Thanks to you, young boy. I wish you a good day"

They continued their path, although Byleth noticed that Edelgard was more silent than usual, her ears and cheeks red.

"Are you ok, Edelgard?"

"I didn´t expect from you to accept such misunderstanding"

"It was an inoffensive confusion. Besides, the old lady was so nice to us that I thought it would be a pity to tell her otherwise. Are you upset by that?"

"It´s not that, but… nevermind" she said toying with her hair.

Byleth didn´t feel like pressing her any further so they remained silent for the time being.

….

"Morning Teach, I see that you have already went on a walk around the market" Claude was sitting on a bench in the central garden when he saw them.

"I was just checking some things with Edelgard"

"No problem. There is so much to see that I´m sure we will be the whole day out, but first we should take breakfast"

They entered the dining room, where some of his students were already having breakfast. Among them he could see Petra.

"Good morning Professor, Edelgard" she greeted them

"Happy birthday Petra" congratulated her Byleth

"I wish you have a great day. The Professor and I were searching for an appropriate present for you. I hope that you like this"

"It's wonderful! Thank you! Thanks for remembering it!" Petra thanked them, her eyes full of joy. She immediately took the hair ornaments and put them on her hair.

"It seems we already have something to celebrate. Even if we aren´t classmates, I hope you have a good day Petra" said Claude with sincere smile.

"Thank you!"

"Oh Petra, I was planning to be the first to congratulate you, but the Professor and Edelgard were faster than me. I have this accessory for you. I think it will match with your exotic look"

"Thank you Dorothea. In Brigid the order is not important, but the intention"

One by one the students congratulated her, although he sensed that Caspar was a bit uncomfortable when he had to face her.

"Time to leave! The market in front of us is a good place to start, but there is much more to it. The harbor is the place where you can see all kinds of strange things and the tales of the sailors are really interesting."

The market was even more crowded than when they were there early in the morning. The mixture of all kind of colors, accents and objects was fascinating. They separated themselves in different groups, each of them searching for unusual objects, food or accessories. He decided to walk around with Edelgard, Claude and Lysithea. When they were near the old lady´s stall, Edelgard started to walk faster, despite the complaints of Lysithea. "Don´t worry Lysithea, I saw another stall a bit ahead"

"This place has been used as a market for the last one hundred years. At first the market took place outside the city, but as it grew larger it started to take place within it. Look at that warrior; he is selling some Almyran´s bows"

Claude approached the warrior and so did Byleth. Claude was analyzing the length of the bow and its materials.

"You seem to know a lot about Almyra."

"Just a bit Teach, is to the east of the Alliance after all. The people of Fódlan doesn´t have a good opinion about them, since they have different customs to our own, but I think that we have more similarities than differences. Don´t you think that Teach? I know that, as a mercenary, you have travelled a lot around the world. Do you have a particular opinion about Almyra?"

"After all my travels what I can say is that despite cultural or linguistic differences we are similar to each other. Among my comrades were some Almyrans and I have nothing against them"

"Most people should join a mercenary group at least once in their lives to think like you Teach" laughed Claude. "Even here in Fódlan we argue between each other based on our families and stuff like that. It doesn´t matter what you are, there will always be someone that will criticize you"

Hearing him, Byleth thought that in some regards he had some similarities with Edelgard´s reasoning.

"Perhaps that will eventually change"

"I hope so, but now is not the time to turn into a philosopher Teach. What about going to the harbor? It is one of the few places in Fódlan where you can see all types of people"

"I´m ok with it, but where are they?" Byleth had lost sight of Edelgard and Lysithea.

"The little Princess and Lysithea? They are over there, eating some sweets"

Seeing them enjoying their time together made him smile a bit. He had the feeling that they had more things in common that just their appearance.

"Let´s just go ahead Teach. I will tell them later to follow us"

They headed to the harbor. All kind of ships were around them, the place filled with sailors carrying wares and shouting to each other in different languages.

"You could say this is the world as it's finest" laughed Claude. "Even without understanding each other they are cooperating between them. It sounds poetic to me"

One of the ships caught Byleth´s attention. It was a giant galleon. The wood employed to use it was of an unusual pearl color and its sails had strange motives that Byleth couldn´t understand.

"That´s a galleon from Morfis" explained to him Claude. "They are particularly strange folk, experts in all fields of magic. They have a lot of trade routes, but they don´t let strangers enter past the coast of their country. They have a warehouse over there and they usually offer their fortune telling services. We can go there if you want, although I must tell you that they aren´t really talkative"

"Me neither"

"Touché" laughed Claude. "Then let´s go"

They approached the warehouse, where the people from the galleon where carrying their goods. All of them were wearing white clothes with a multicolor prism hanging from their necks.

"Good morning Lord Claude" greeted him an old man with red eyes. "The people from Morfis send their regards"

"Thank you. I was just showing a friend the harbor. Are you still doing fortune telling around here?"

"Only oracles are allowed to do such thing Lord Claude." Said a younger man with bright blue eyes.

"Who wishes to know their fortune?" asked a young woman´s voice, the moment they heard their voice the rest of the crew bowed.

Byleth looked at the woman that was approaching them. He had the feeling they had the same age. Her skin was pale like Edelgard´s, but she was only a pair of inches smaller than him. Her hair was long and dark, but her most striking feature was the eyes. One of her eyes was navy blue like the depths of the sea, but the other was crimson red. They had a hypnotizing power in them. He realized that the eyes of the members of the crew were also red or blue, but she was the only one to have such combination.

"Oh, you must be an oracle" said Claude

"I am" she then looked at Byleth "If you wish to know your fortune you shall accompany me" she then entered into the warehouse without looking back.

He wasn´t sure if he should enter the building.

"Don´t worry Teach, I will be waiting for you outside. Take it easy, they are just like that"

He entered the warehouse. He followed her until they arrived to a room covered in tapestries with an empty fountain in the middle of the room. The room was illuminated by candles that had flames in different colors.

"Do you want to know something in particular?" she asked him as she picked a jug.

Byleth started to think about it. There were a lot of things he wouldn´t mind to know, but then the image of the strange events he had recently experienced came to his mind.

"The truth" he answered

Hearing his answer her eyes looked at him with renewed interest.

"The truth, such a beautiful yet terrible thing. As you wish" she then poured water into the fountain. "Take a closer look"

He approached the fountain. At first he only saw his own reflection, but before he realized he wasn´t in the room anymore. He was completely surrounded by shadows.

"Where am I?"

Then a star in the sky appeared. He could feel its brightness and warmth and felt in peace for a moment. Around the star winged beasts started to appear, singing to it. Suddenly the star was surrounded by a dark cloud that extinguished most of its light, only a few ashes falling to the ground, the winged beasts nowhere to be seen. The ground under him collapsed, making him fall into the Abyss. He tried to shout, but no sound left his lips. He closed his eyes thinking he was going to die.

But nothing happened.

When he opened his eyes again, he was in the middle of a great plain. An eagle was flying in circles around a lion and a deer. With a cry the eagle attacked from the skies, trying to blind the lion. The lion was trying to kill the eagle but at the same time was trying to devour the deer and the deer was trying to defend itself from its attackers. So focused they were in their battle that they hadn´t realized that an immense black cloud was approaching them. When the cloud arrived to them he could see nothing but darkness.

When it disappeared he was in front of a lake covered in red lotuses. He could see a maiden in the center of the lake. When he realized she was crying he tried to approach her, but the moment he touched the water he was trapped by an unknown hand, that sank him into the depths of the lake. He fought to free himself from its grip and tried to reach the surface. When he did he was inside the cathedral of the monastery.

"How can this be?" he asked himself completely confused. He looked to his surroundings. Snow was falling. The roof appeared to be partially collapsed and in front of him, he could see the statue of an angel that was holding a flaming sword on his right hand, pointing to the skies. Its left hand was trying to touch a rose next to it, that was quickly withering, but it was chained to a balance to its right. The statue was bleeding from its eyes and when he approached the angel, it fell on him. He didn´t have time to scream, he could only heard his heartbeat as he was engulfed by shadows.

When he opened again his eyes, he was in front of the fountain, heavily breathing.

"What did I see?"

"The truth" she simply answered the young woman. "But don´t trust completely what you have just seen, our eyes can deceive us. Even the most prepared oracles can fail"

"Did you see it too?"

"Only fragments since I wasn´t the one in front of the fountain, but you shouldn´t let these events mark your life Byleth"

"How do you know my name?"

"Your eyes told me. You are an honest being, but I feel something hiding below the surface, something different to you"

He remained silent for a moment. He wasn´t sure about what had just happened to him and he was still feeling confused.

"It´s normal feeling like that if you have never experienced such magic before. In Morfis we are specialized in visions and interpretations of dreams, but as humans we have our own limits. What I can say to you is this. Prediction is based on hypothesis and there is nothing set in stone."

"Then I will continue as I´ve been doing until now"

"A wise choice. Some of my citizens have fallen into despair and madness due to the visions they had, unsure if they were real or not. What I have just shown you is a tool. It shall never be considered the absolute truth. I paid a high price for that knowledge when I was younger"

"Thank you, I should leave then". He sensed a strange aura coming from her and he couldn´t trust her completely.

"Farewell Byleth, our paths may never cross again but if they do head south and the gates of the desert shall open for you" she smiled to him, although one of her eyes was cold as ice and the other one scorching as fire.

….

"Teach, you took a long time. I thought you had been abducted"

"Sorry for making you wait Claude"

"No problem. The people from Morfis are an interesting folk, but they are surrounded by too many mysteries. Don´t think too hard about they say to you, it´s like talking to a wall. Edelgard and Lysithea are over there, we should go too"

He followed Claude in complete silent, lost in thought.

"I don´t have any familiarity with that kind of magic" commented Sothis inside his head. "It seems that is a completely different branch of magic to the one that is practiced here, in Fódlan."

"What do you think about what happened?"

"About that? I have the same advice I gave you the other time. Don´t obsess over it. That strange woman said the same thing. When you aren´t sure about what is real and what is not it is better to avoid unnecessary risks. Besides, I´ve been thinking about that sword that you left at the monastery for this task"

"The Sword of the Creator?"

"Exactly. Right now you could say you were barely affected when you had those visions, yet when something similar happened with the sword you even lost your consciousness. I think that with the sword the visions happened within your body and in the case of what happened now the influence was outside."

"I have a connection with that sword, yet I don´t know why"

"I suspect of someone who may know"

"Rhea?"

"Correct. She wants you to use that Sword, but she isn´t transparent about her motives. Were you really chosen by the Sword or there is something more to it? Ahh, I´m growing tired again, I will be taking a nap"

"You are leaving me with more questions than answers" but she said nothing. "Rest well Sothis" he thought.

When they met again with Edelgard and Lysithea the latter one had her hands full of all types of sweets.

"Professor you must try these!"

"Thank you Lysithea" he said, picking one of the sweets.

"Be careful with these two Teach, or you will end up turning into a sweet addict."

"There is not something like too much sweet Claude" protested Lysithea "Don´t you agree Edelgard"

"I completely agree with you" said a smiling Edelgard.

They spent their rest of the time together. Claude showed them all kind of different places until they stopped in front of a fountain, which was in a smaller square next to the main market.

"This fountain is known to grant wishes. You just have to pick a coin, close your eyes and throw it to the water behind you. Why won´t give it a try?" Claude did as he said.

"What did you wish for?" asked Lysithea.

"If I told it would have no purpose." He laughed. "You have to keep it to yourself and it may come to true"

One by one they did as Claude did until it was the turn of Byleth.

"Come on, give it a try Teach"

"What should I wish for?" he thought. He closed his eyes and found his answer.

"For a world where they are safe" he thought, the faces of his dear students floating inside his head.

They met again with the others at the gates of Claude´s mansion. Petra was covered in all kind of exotic ornaments and Dorothea too. Lorenz was wearing a new rose that matched with Ferdinand´s. Caspar had bought a pair of battling gauntlets with strange glyphs over it and Linhardt had a cushion in his hands. Bernadetta was holding a small cage with a hamster in it and Hubert was holding in his hands what appeared to be coffee beans.

"It seems that everyone had a great time! Let´s return and enjoy a good meal"

"Go ahead without me Claude, I will search for my father"

"Ok Teach, won´t be too late"

Leaving behind his students he went to his father´s room and knocked the door. A few moments later the door opened, his father was yawning in front of him.

"Good evening son, I was recovering my energy. How was it today?"

"It was great. This city is full of life"

"I´m glad to hear that." He said rubbing his hair. "We should be preparing to return. If Seteth knew what we are doing now he would imprison me with another mountain of paperwork"

Their conversation was interrupted when some knocked the door.

"Come in"

"Sir Jeralt, forgive my intrusion" said one of House Riegan´s soldiers "But we have just received this message"

"Don´t worry about it and thanks"

After dismissing the messenger his father start to read the content of the letter, his face turning darker with every line he read.

Take a look at this

He started to read the letter and stood still when he realized what was happening.

"Flayn has disappeared"

"I guess that our little journey ends here. Tell your students we will be leaving tomorrow morning. We will need fresh horses if we want to arrive earlier"

"Why has something like this suddenly happened? And why Flayn?" he wondered as he headed to the dining room, feeling guilty of ruining the end of the day for his students.


	24. Conflicting feelings

**9/12 Horsebow moon**

"What is he planning to do with her?"

They had already entered the dominion of the monastery, but she could feel that everyone was tense. Her Teacher and Jeralt were riding next to each other with a serious expression on their faces.

She had known that his uncle was up to something in the monastery this month, but he hadn´t trusted her the objectives of his plan. "It must be related to the children of the Goddess and Flayn was the easiest target, but why?" She hated to lose control of the events happening around her and she feared it wasn´t the only thing she was losing control about. Every time she looked at her Teacher she could feel comfortable warmth inside her. To add salt to the wound the events of the last few days kept coming to her mind.

"I´m the heir of an empire, I can´t dwell on dreams, no matter how tempting they are." She keep saying to herself, but as time passed the strength of those words were diluting. At first, she admired her Teacher for his strength and skills in combat, but that had started to change as time passed. It was the second time she had a feeling like this. The first time was with a young noble from the kingdom which she couldn´t recall his face, but that had happened a lifetime ago, when her hair was still its usual self and it was an innocent childhood love. Now it was more intense and different "What is happening to me?" she lamented. She knew that she didn´t have time for something like this. "In a few months everything will change, yet I can´t avoid feeling like this. I must remain focused" she sighed.

"Is something bothering you Edelgard?"

"My Teacher is nothing"

He looked at her directly to her eyes, before he nodded.

"If you are wondering about something feel free to tell me about it if you want to" he then approached his father again.

"He is too nice for his own good" she thought, before trying to focus her mind on the mysteries surrounding his uncle´s real objectives.

….

"I will be going to Rhea´s place" said Byleth to his students "I will tell you later if we know anything new about Flayn´s situation. You are free to go now, but stay safe"

After dispatching his students he headed to the audience room accompanied by his father.

"Who would want to kidnap Flayn?"

"Do you think is it related to the events of the last months?" asked Byleth

"I highly doubt so. Flayn holds no real position within the Church. She is just Seteth´s sister. If they were asking for a rescue I could understand, but the letter we received said nothing about that. Anyway, we should just ask Rhea for new information on this matter"

When they entered the audience room they could see Rhea talking with Seteth. Rhea was trying to comfort Seteth, which had an anguished expression on his face.

"Professor Byleth, Jeralt welcome again to the monastery. As you know Flayn has disappeared" said Rhea. "It is regretful that we have to meet again in such dire circumstances"

"When did it happen?" asked Byleth

"A few days ago" said Seteth. I went to the town to buy Flayn´s favorite sweets, but when I returned she was nowhere to be seen. At first I didn´t worry too much about it, but when it was the time for dinner and she hadn´t appeared yet I started to worry"

"We have sent the knights all around the monastery, but they haven´t found any proof that she had left the monastery. I have the suspicion that she might still be here"

"Do you have any theories about this?"

"They might be trying to catch my attention, since is public knowledge that I´m very fond of my sister, but the fact that we haven´t received any contact from them makes me wonder about their real objectives"

"There are also rumors of someone prowling the streets and attacking innocents, night after night." added Rhea. I find these rumors unfounded, but it would be wise to investigate a bit more on that matter too. Professor Manuela has recently been to the town and she can explain to you more on that matter. I beg both of you and the students for help."

"It will be done Lady Rhea"

"Start as soon as possible, I hope for the best"

Byleth and his father left the room in complete silence. When he made sure that no one was around them his father sighed.

"I´ve never seen Seteth like that. I´m sure he is suffering a lot"

"He is really protective of her sister" Byleth felt pity for him; he preferred his usual serious tone and appearance that the one he had just seen.

"We must resolve this mystery as soon as possible. I guess that we will start patrolling the monastery again as we did two months ago"

"We should ask Manuela about those rumors, we don´t know if they are related to our current task or not"

"I will accompany you then"

They headed to the infirmary, where they supposed Manuela was working. When they entered the room they found the Professor attending an ill student.

"Oh Byleth, Jeralt. I didn´t expect to see two handsome men come at the same time for me. I feel honored"

"I´m glad to see you as always Manuela" grinned Jeralt.

"We have just been informed about rumors regarding a series of attacks happening in the proximities of the monastery. Do you know anything about it?"

"I´ve heard from them. A grim reaper has been appearing in the depths of night wielding a giant scythe and killing those unlucky enough to find it"

"A grim reaper near the monastery?"

"Yes, the gods of death from the ancient times, but luckily no one has been found dead so it must be just rumors"

"I wouldn´t normally pay attention to such a ludicrous story. However, we should check the surroundings of the monastery just in case to avoid further complications. Don´t you agree son?"

"You are right. We have to cover a wider area if we want to find her fast. Thank you for your time Manuela, stay safe"

"Thank you for your nice words Byleth" she said winking an eye to him. "Be careful out there too"

"I will be heading to my room Byleth. You should inform your students about what we had just learnt"

"Understood father, see you later"

He walked through the corridors. He didn´t know where his students could be, so he decided to start with the student´s dormitories.

He knocked at Edelgard´s door. A few seconds later, a face he had grown used to see appeared in front of him.

"Hello Professor"

"I´ve had just talked with the archbishop and Seteth about our current problem. They suspect that Flayn is still here so they want us to join them in their investigation. We will be joining their efforts until we find her. I want you to summon the rest of the students at our classroom."

"It will be done my Teacher. If she is still here we have to be more cautious, since we don´t know the identity of the kidnappers yet."

"That´s not the only problem. Rumors about a grim reaper wielding a giant scythe that has been attacking innocents at night had spread around the town."

"We should be careful about that too. We don´t know if there is any truth to those rumors, but just in case"

He was preparing to leave when he recalled something.

"Edelgard?"

"Yes, my Teacher?"

"When do you want to start your swimming lessons?"

"I didn´t expect you to remember something like that right now" said Edelgard, evidently blushed.

"I told you I won´t let you be in such a risk anymore. The monastery has pools that aren´t too deep and they can be used to train. Do you have any preferences?"

"It would be better for me if we could practice when no one is around there" she said, avoiding his eyes. "It would be an embarrassing experience to admit such liability in public"

"Do you want to start from tonight?"

"I guess, it would be worse if we postpone it. I will do my best, but please don´t tell anyone about this, specially Hubert and Dorothea"

"I promise I won´t tell anyone about this. I will wait for you at the courtyard after dinner" He nodded to her. "Search for the others, we must prepare a strategy"

…

Thirty minutes later his students were at his class, waiting for his instructions.

"As you have already heard, Flayn has been kidnapped. We don´t know the identity of the perpetrators, but there is suspicion that Flayn is still here, so we have to be more careful than usual. As we did when the assassination plot happened, we must search around the monastery. Report to me any finding you make and don´t hesitate to tell me if you have suspicions about someone in particular. We will keep the classes as usual if possible, but right now our priority is to find Flayn. Understood?"

"Yes, Professor"

"There are some rumors circulating about a grim reaper patrolling the town at night. There may be just rumors, but to avoid any risks be accompanied if you have to leave your rooms at night"

"It would be safer to just stay in our rooms then" said Bernadetta.

"I agree with her, looking for a missing person is troublesome enough, but avoiding someone like that is too much" said Linhardt

"It´s just a rumor. I´m just telling you to avoid unnecessary risks. We will start class now. Don´t worry Linhardt, we will be doing theory today"

"I thank you for that" he smiled to him.

"Theory, my weakness" complained Caspar

…..

After the class had ended Byleth headed to the stables. He wanted to check the state of his student´s horses to make sure they were ready in case they had to use them. He was turning a corner when he impacted with someone.

"AH!"

"I´m sorry. I didn´t expect someone. Are you ok Annette?" Byleth said offering her his hand.

"Don´t worry Professor. The fault is all mine, since I wasn´t paying attention. I guess that you already know about Flayn´s disappearance"

"Yes, we will be joining the efforts to find her."

"That´s nice. We have been searching for her, but we haven´t found her yet. Do you have any idea where she could be?"

Byleth was about to answer when a man came from the stables. It was Gilbert.

"Hello Gilbert"

"Hello Professor" Gilbert´s usual serious expression grew stiffer when he saw Annette. "I have heard from the archbishop that you completed with success your expedition to the Leicester Alliance. I congratulate you. If you forgive me I will be heading to the cathedral" He left them without giving him a chance to answer.

"He hasn´t changed a bit" Annette sighed.

"Do you know him?"

"Of course I do, he is my father after all"

Byleth was suspicious about that due to their physical traits, but he was nevertheless surprised.

"Your personalities are so different"

"He used to be warmer when I was younger. In my country loyalty is a quality extremely important and my father has always put his loyalty to the Holy Kingdom and the Church first. If I can be sincere with you I came to this place just to search for him"

"I hope that you can get along again" even though Gilbert had a taciturn personality he hoped that Annette was able to achieve her objective.

"Even if he doesn´t want to return at least I have to try!" she smiled to him. "By the way Professor I would like to train with you if you have some free time. I need to do my best"

Watching her cheerful usual self, Byleth couldn´t avoid smiling to her.

"Of course Annette. I will make sure to find some time to practice"

"Thank you Professor! You sure are the best. I will be leaving now. Bye!"

"She is very hard working" he said to himself, looking at her energetic walking.

…..

The night had already fallen when she left her room. She made sure that no one was still hanging around and headed to the courtyard. Edelgard was wearing her leather armor. She found him leaning on a column, watching the stars of the sky.

"Good evening Professor" she said to her Teacher, fighting to hide her embarrassing feelings.

"Good evening Edelgard. Let´s head to the pools, I´m sure that no one will be there now as you asked me for before"

"I thank you for that"

She followed him to the pool. It was near the area of the sauna. Its waters came from an underground stream; although she wasn't sure where it was exactly located they looked clean.

"The water keeps flowing through the holes to the sides to avoid it getting stagnant. You don´t have to worry, is cleaner than the fishing pool"

"And less exposed" she thought.

"I will go first" he said, entering the pool and stopping in the middle of it. "Walk into the pool until you feel that you are losing contact with the floor under you"

Edelgard did as he told her. The water was a bit cold, but she was focused on her steps. It didn´t take too long until the water reached her neck. She then stopped and looked at him.

"This is my limit my Teacher" she said, embarrassed as she was admitting her short height.

"There is no need to feel sorry about it" he said swimming to her. "The first step we have to achieve is making you float on the water. A normal person would drown in the case they were wearing a heavy armor, but I´ve felt your strength and I know that if you can control your fears you can reach for the shore or the bank of a river before exhausting yourself. In this case you are wearing leather armor so you will be facing less resistance. The key to keep afloat is to distribute your weight in the maximum possible area. Try lying horizontally, extending your arms and legs. I will be helping you this time with my hand"

She did as she was told, feeling her Teachers hand on her back. She closed her eyes, trying to create a mask that hided her embarrassment.

"Now extend your hands and limbs"

She remained like that for a while, her heartbeats and her Teacher´s hand the only things she could feel.

"Good job, now try doing the same without my hand" he said as he released his hand from her.

She felt a bit of fear the moment she stopped feeling his hand, but she remained with her eyes closed, trying her best to remain calm. After a minute had passed that felt like an eternity to her she could sense his hand on her back again.

"You are doing well. Now I will move you to a deeper area. You don´t have to worry. I won´t be leaving you alone yet"

"If you say it like that you will make me worry about the same step" although she couldn´t avoid smiling. When she felt she was advancing to the center of the pool she opened her eyes. Byleth was carefully moving her to the center of the pool. She could see the determination in his eyes.

"Stay still and familiarize with your surroundings"

After a few minutes had passed she felt her Professor´s hand leaving here, but she remained calm since he was next to her.

"You are doing a great job Edelgard" he said, placing his hand on her back again. "If it is ok for you we can try to move around the pool now"

"I´m afraid that I don´t have enough confidence to swim by my own yet"

"You don´t have to worry. I will be holding your hands; you just need to move your legs for now"

She felt extremely flustered when his hands touched hers, a dizzying feeling starting to take control over her body, but she did as she was told. She lost count of time as they moved around the pool. She tried to think about anything else but the warmth of his hands was too intense.

"I think that this is enough for today. You don´t have to worry, you can walk in this area" he said as he helped her to stand up.

"Thank you for your patience my teacher" she said avoiding his eyes.

"No need to thank me Edelgard, if this can end up saving your life then that is enough for me". After leaving the pool he applied magic on her, drying her clothes.

"The first step is always the most difficult one. I´m proud of you Edelgard, if you are able to overcome your fear you will end up being stronger than before"

"I thank you for your help on that matter my Teacher" she said with her eyes focused on her feet.

"When do you want to have the next lesson?"

"I guess that once per week would be enough for you?" "I couldn´t handle something like this more than once per week" she thought to herself.

"Very well, same hour same place next week then. Let me accompany you to the dormitories"

They walked in complete silence to the dormitories, her Professor had a neutral expression on his face, completely oblivious to the internal struggle she was facing between her duty and the feelings she feared to admit.

"We have arrived" Byleth announced

"Thank you for accompanying me. Good night Byleth"

Hearing her words her teacher´s expression changed a bit.

"Did I say something strange?"

"Not at all, it´s just that I liked you saying my name" he gently smiled to her.

"A-Anyway good night" she said, feeling her cheeks get hot.

"See you tomorrow! Tell the rest to gather at our class to commence our investigation" he said, leaving her alone without looking back again.

She closed the door behind her and burrowed her face into the armored bear stuffy that the professor had given to her what it appeared to be ages ago.

"I´m a fool" she said to herself. She knew that Hubert would be horrified about the time she had been spending with her Teacher and she hardly couldn´t blame him. "I must realize that whatever happens, it is doomed to fail." Even if her Professor had shown to hold different opinions against the archbishop she was unsure if he would choose to believe in her when the time comes. "Growing fond of someone is risky already, but in this case I would be betting my own life." She had too many fronts opened at the same time. The emperor inside her had always put her duty before her won happiness, yet she could feel opposition inside her. "Is it selfish to feel like this?"

She tried to sleep, but no matter how many times she tried she couldn't. Sighing, she left her room and took a walk through the aisles, her only companion the moonlight. She had just arrived to the courtyard when she felt someone´s presence.

"Show yourself" she commanded.

A few moments later, a shadow wielding a giant scythe appeared in front of him.

"I think I told you to be more discreet with your activities"

"Don´t ask me. Orders from your uncle" said Jeritza with a distorted voice. "He is using me as a distraction. He wants to split the church´s attention"

"He could have used one of his men if he wanted to do so". She had been lucky that no one had discovered yet Jeritza´s true identity after the events of two months ago, but she wasn´t sure if the result would be the same this month.

"You told me to obey his orders"

"I did so, although regrettably. What have you done to Flayn?"

"She is fine. I was just told to take her hostage; I have no instructions apart from that"

"Where is she?" she felt angered to ask such basic questions to him. It was evident that her uncle considered her just a tool for his own purposes.

"Beneath the monastery. A tunnel connects my room to the place where she is hold hostage. Solon comes to visit her every day. He is investigating something about her body"

"That monster" she thought to herself. She didn´t know what they were planning but she knew that nothing good could come from the machinations of that filthy creature.

"Are there any other accesses to that place?"

"It is like a labyrinth. I´ve kept investigating about it, but I only know a fraction of the tunnels under us"

"Don´t kill anyone on your night rounds unless it is necessary"

"I won´t unless he is that Professor"

"Especially if it is him, control your inner demon Jeritza"

Since he was wearing that helmet he couldn´t see his expression, but he could sense anger in his voice.

"I will do as you command, but you know that I cannot completely control him"

"Try to remain as Jeritza as soon as possible" She knew that his split personality came from the traumas of his past, but she could do nothing about it.

"Return to your room and avoid entering the monastery like this, you are only going to reveal your identity"

"I will be careful" he said, leaving her alone.

She was relieved to know Flayn´s location, but she was conflicted about how was the best way to tell her Professor. Telling outright about her location would make him wonder how she knew about it and if he saw Jeritza as the death knight; he would start to distrust her. She didn´t want to give them time for their experimentation, but she couldn´t oppose them directly or they would act in retaliation. "I need to be subtle about this"

She spent the rest of the night thinking about a plan

…..

**9/13**

"Lady Edelgard you seem tired" observed Hubert

"I was informed by Jeritza about Flayn´s current location". After explaining to him her conversation with Jeritza, Hubert looked at her with a serious look.

"They are definitely experimenting something on her. We shouldn´t allow them too much time for our own sake."

"We must make the Professor find the place where she is hold hostage"

"I hope that you aren´t implying that we must tell him everything"

"Of course not. That would be a foolish act. However, we could do something indirectly"

"Please, explain to me what your plan is"

"We must take advantage of our partial knowledge of the tunnels under the monastery. We must lead our Professor to find an access to that area."

"Our investigations could be useful on that matter. If there is some kind of magic device used to keep Flayn imprisoned I could identify where she is"

"Since they already suspect that Flayn might not have left the monastery we won´t waste our time searching out there." Edelgard knew it was a race against time, but it was the only option she could think of, that avoided risking her own position. "Help me search for the rest of our classmates. We mustn´t make the Professor wait"

"It will be done Lady Edelgard"

….

Everyone was already waiting for her Professor when he appeared through the door. She noticed that Petra and Dorothea were carrying Bernadetta in their arms.

"Good morning everyone" Byleth greeted them when he arrived. "We will be making rounds at the monastery. Since we don´t know where our enemy is, I only plan to divide ourselves in two groups.

"I offer to accompany you my Teacher"

"In that case I must accompany you too" added Hubert

"Very well, anyone else?"

"I don´t want to join any group! Please have mercy!" cried Bernadetta.

"Professor, I would have liked to accompany you, but I think that Bernie needs more help than you"

"I think the same" said Petra. "I will protect you Bernadetta"

"T-Thank you" said Bernadetta, relaxing a bit.

"I will help them too Professor" said Ferdinand

"Is that something noble related Ferdie?"

"Not at all, I just think that Bernadetta needs us more"

"Oh! I didn´t expect that coming from you"

"In that case I will patrol with Bernadetta´s group!" shouted Caspar

"Since when is my group?" asked Bernadetta, making a shy smile.

"I will be going with them too Professor" said Linhardt "I know that look in your eyes and it just exhausts me"

"I have no problem with that. Edelgard and Hubert will accompany me then. The rest stay together and come to this place at the end of the day if you have found something relevant. The investigation begins now"

"Where should we start investigating?" she asked.

"The east side will be our area of investigation. The rest take care of the west area"

"Understood"

They left the class and separated in two groups. She couldn´t believe the luck they had with the creation of the groups, although a part of her was worried for Bernadetta´s wellbeing. Hubert had reported to her that he had to carry her one day to her room when she passed out in front of him, after confronting her about her nocturnal habits. "I hope she doesn´t pass out again for the time being"

They weren´t the only ones helping. The students from the other classes were contributing to the efforts and even knights like Catherine were searching for Flayn.

"It is evident that Seteth is deeply worried about her sister" commented Hubert to her side.

"They are family after all, wouldn´t you do the same for yours?" asked him Byleth.

"For my family? I may lend a hand when the time comes, but I´m not sure that my father will welcome it" he chuckled

"Byleth I see that you are already joining the investigation" said Jeralt approaching them. He was accompanied by Leonie, one of the golden deer students.

"I was talking with captain Jeralt about possible suspicious people. That old man, Tomas, gives me bad vibes. I´ve heard that the days prior to her disappearance he had been asking about Flayn"

Edelgard was surprised by such accurate assumption. "Even if it is a conjecture, her senses are sharp" she had to admit.

"He has been here for decades as far as I know. I don´t see any point in interrogating him"

"We have to make sure, even if we are confident he is not responsible of such vicious act" said Edelgard to him.

"I will leave it to you and your students them" Jeralt said, rubbing her Teacher´s hair. "See you later son"

"Bye father"

Jeralt and Leonie left, although Leonie looked at her Professor as if she was offended by what had just happened.

"We should be searching for Tomas, Professor"

"You are right Hubert, let´s find him"

They didn´t need to search much further since they found him in the gardens of the monastery.

"Good morning Professor. How can I help you?" Tomas said with a gentle smile. "His acting is good, I must admit" thought Edelgard. She could only feel pity of the man that was killed to obtain that appearance.

"You are a suspect of kidnapping Flayn. Do you have anything to say about that?"

Tomas´s eyes grew wide with Byleth´s question. He quickly looked at her, but her face remained stoic.

"I am surprised to hear such statement, but I have no relation with this disturbing event"

"You have been recently asking about Flayn, can I ask why?"

"I was just interested in her Crest. As an intellectual I share the same interest on that matter with experts like Hanneman. I am guilty of my curiosity, nothing more."

Byleth silently looked at him for a few seconds before nodding.

"Understood, stay safe"

"Don´t worry, Professor, an old man like me won´t be of much interest"

After leaving Tomas at the gardens they entered the main hall, where Hanneman and Manuela were talking.

"Morning Byleth" Manuela greeted her with a wink.

"Good morning Manuela, Hanneman. I was talking with Tomas about Flayn´s disappearance. He told me that you were also interested in her crest"

"It is true. Flayn holds a major crest of Cethleann, but it is not a unique crest. I promise you that I have nothing to do with her disappearance. Besides, having you, I don´t need nothing more to investigate"

"That sounds quite strange, Hanneman. If Byleth was a girl you would have sounded like a pervert"

"Better being considered a pervert that a lady that scares away every suitor she has"

"That was rude!"

They left the two Professors with their dispute. Edelgard couldn´t avoid to sigh when their voices could be heard meters away from them.

They continued their investigation, but they achieved nothing with their questioning.

"Professor, I fear that interrogating everyone won´t drive us closer to the truth. I propose a more practical approach on this matter"

"You are right Edelgard, she is nowhere to be seen. If she is still around there is only one place where she could be"

"The depths of the monastery"

"A path to the shadows" laughed Hubert. "When we were investigating two months ago I found an interesting passage. It may be useful for our search"

"Guide us to it Hubert" ordered Edelgard

They followed him to the lower levels of the monastery. They were in the middle of an aisle when he stopped between two statues. He pressed his hand into the wall and it suddenly disappeared.

"An illusory wall. A person without magic capabilities could pass by without noticing anything in particular, but magic always leaves traces, no matter how small they can be. Since I´m the one who discovered it I will be entering first. Please follow me". Byleth was the second to enter the tunnel, shortly followed by her. Soon after, light started to grow scarce so her Professor and Hubert casted fire spells to cast the shadows away. A sepulchral silent fell between them, the slightest of noises sounded bigger than usual. Feeling the tension in the air they walked into the depths of the monastery.

She had lost count of time when her Professor stopped in front of her. She was about to ask, when he covered her mouth and signaled to a level lower than theirs.

A young man with purple hair was walking alongside what appeared to be two soldiers. The young man was wearing something that resembled their school uniform. They were talking about something, but the noise of an underground river prevented them from hearing the content of their conversation. After a while, the purple haired man casted a spell that made him and the two soldiers disappear. They remained silent for a while, silent witnesses of what they have just seen.

"The young man with the purple hair appeared to be wearing a school uniform"

"You are right Edelgard. Does it mean that there are students related to this incident?"

"I highly doubt so. However, we shouldn´t take this new founding lightly."

"Lady Edelgard is right. We should keep this new finding to ourselves for the time being. They could be bandits, but the fact that one of them appears to be a student doesn´t completely match with that hypothesis."

"The only thing we know now is that this monastery is full of unknown mysteries. We should return to the surface, before everyone starts to worry about our wellbeing my Teacher"

"You are right Edelgard"

"I highly doubt that someone would worry about me" laughed Hubert.

They started their slow return to the surface. She was following close behind her Professor, lost in thought. "They didn´t appear to be part of their group. Are they just a group of bandits lurking for the treasures hidden in the depths of the monastery or is there something more to it?" She felt frustrated with the amount of problems surrounding her. "So many things that are out of my control…" Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt something crawling next to her. When she looked for the origin of the sound she saw a rat of a monstrous size. The moment she saw it memories from her confinement came to her mind, it didn´t help that they were surrounded by darkness. She instinctively walked away from it, colliding with her Teacher´s back.

Her Professor suddenly stopped and looked at her. Feeling embarrassed by her attitude she tried to apologize.

"I´m sorry about that I was just…"

He took her hand and held it gently.

"There is nothing to fear Edelgard; I will make sure that you suffer no harm. We should continue. I wouldn´t want to make Hubert wait" he said to her with a faint smile.

"Yes, we should hurry up" her voice a mere whisper.

He held her hand for the rest of the way. She didn´t make any attempt to release her hand and he didn´t mind either.

…

"We have finally returned" Hubert´s voice announced.

"The sun is already setting so it appears that we have spent most of the day in the depths of the monastery"

"You are right Professor. Lady Edelgard, are you alright? Your ears and cheeks are red" said Hubert hurriedly rushing to her side.

"I´m ok, the air was just cool there is nothing to worry about" she said trying to cover up.

"I will accompany you to Manuela´s place" offered her Teacher.

"I don´t think that…"

"I must agree with our Professor on this matter. Your health is of capital importance to me. You shouldn´t neglect your own health Lady Edelgard"

"I thought I was the one that gave orders"

"Sorry if I have overstepped"

"No need to apologize Hubert. I know that you worry about my wellbeing. I will accompany our Professor then"

They left Hubert behind and headed to Manuela´s infirmary. They were in complete silent, Edelgard too embarrassed to admit the true reason that was driving them to the infirmary.

"I didn´t know that you are afraid of rats" her Professor finally said, breaking the silence between them.

"It´s not as simple as that. The rats bring me memories of a past that comes to visit me into my dreams."

"The tortures that you have been enduring"

"Exactly. They are a silent reminder of what has happened to me"

"I will make sure that you won´t have to suffer something like this anymore Edelgard. I feel sorry for your loss"

"No need to apologize my Teacher. And thank you. Thank you for offering to help me even if you don´t know everything about me and my past"

They finally arrived to the infirmary, but when Byleth opened the door Manuela was nowhere to be seen.

"How strange" Byleth commented. "She should still be around here." He then opened the armchair of the infirmary, apparently searching for some medicine.

"I´m not a medic, but this should be enough"

"Thank you"

"We will continue our investigation tomorrow. We must perseverate in our search"

Looking at the determination of his eyes she felt guilty for hiding information from him.

"We will save her. I promise"

"Good night Edelgard. I will be seeing you tomorrow. Please close the door behind you"

"Good night"

After she lost sight of him she sighed.

"If my life was simpler I could just tell the truth". But she knew it was just wishful thinking. Walking on thin life since she had use of reason she couldn´t avoid being guarded. She left the room, her heart stained by a feeling of guiltiness.

…..

**9/14**

Byleth was waiting his students at the classroom. After a few minutes, when everyone had already arrived he cleared his throat.

"Has anyone discovered something of interest?"

He looked at each one of his student´s face, but he could only find disappointment on them.

"We really did our best Professor, but nothing yet" said Dorothea.

"I am not blaming anyone. We didn´t have much success either."

"Does it mean Flayn is going to die?" said Bernadetta in a depressed state.

"Keep calm Bernie, we have to hope for the best" Dorothea comforted her, although she looked worried.

"The only option we have is to keep searching. We will be…."

"Byleth! I was searching for you" said Hanneman running to him.

"Good morning Hanneman. What has happened?"

"I was searching for Manuela since I wanted to apologize about our dispute, but she is nowhere to be seen."

"When and where was the last time you saw her?"

"I spent some time with Manuela yesterday´s evening" commented Dorothea. "We were at the gardens taking a cup of tea"

"I looked for her at the infirmary, but she wasn´t there last night"

"That´s strange. She wouldn´t skip her duty like that. I haven´t seen Instructor Jeritza since yesterday too. He may know something about this. Can you accompany me?"

"Of course" he then looked at his students. "All of you, come with us, and bring your weapons. We don´t know if something has happened to them too. Hanneman if you excuse me I will be taking my equipment too"

"It is wise to take precautions in such a dire situation. I will be waiting for you at the gardens"

Byleth rushed to his room and changed to his battle equipment. He also took the Sword of the Creator, which had been under the protection of the seal for days.

A few minutes later he arrived to the gardens. After everyone else arrived they followed Hanneman to Jeritza´s room.

Hanneman was trying to open the door, but it was firmly closed.

"We will have to resort to brute force if we want to access"

"In that case I can lend a hand" offered Caspar. He threw a potent punch with his gauntlet that opened the door.

Byleth entered the room after Hanneman and collided with him. He appeared to be petrified; when he looked what he was looking at he was shocked.

Manuela was lying on the floor, her face was pale and an area of her dress was stained in red.

"Manuela!" Hanneman rushed to her.

"Is she dead?"

"Luckily not" Hanneman said after checking her pulse. "Her right hand seems to be signaling something"

Byleth followed with his eyes Professor Manuela´s hand and found a bookshelf that looked oddly out of place.

"Caspar, Hubert. Help me"

The three of them moved the bookshelf and they discovered a secret tunnel.

"An interesting turn of events" Hubert observed.

"We need to bring her to the infirmary. I need help to carry her" said Hanneman, that was focused on Manuela.

Byleth was about to offer when he heard Edelgard´s voice.

"I will help you Professor Hanneman"

"Thank you Edelgard"

They quickly left, bringing an unconscious Manuela with them.

"If Professor Manuela is here does it mean that Instructor Jeritza is the responsible of the kidnap?" asked Caspar.

"It may be, we have to be careful now. Professor, what should we do now?"

"Caspar, search for reinforcements. Tell them what had just happened. The rest of me accompany me"

"I will return as soon as possible. Leave it to me!"

"Be careful, we don´t know what is lurking down there. Stay close and keep your weapons closer"

Byleth leaded his students into the tunnel, the Sword of the Creator illuminating their way to the abyss.


	25. The Flame Emperor

They advanced through the tunnel in complete silence, only their breath could be heard. The faint light from the Sword of the Creator allowed Byleth to cast away the shadows in their path. After a few minutes had passed their path grew narrower.

"Professor, I sense some magic ahead from us" told him Hubert.

"We have to be careful, in case that the situation turns difficult leave me"

"But Professor…" protested Ferdinand.

"It is a command, Ferdinand, don´t disobey it"

"I will obey, but I hope we don´t have to resort to something like that"

They continued in complete silence until they arrived to a wide room. With the light they had they couldn´t see where the room ended, but it appeared to be quite big.

"This room looks quite big" whispered Ferdinand "I wonder what…" he suddenly stopped when he realized what it was in front of them.

Flayn was lying on the floor. Her face was extremely pale, but she wasn´t the only person that was unconscious. A red haired girl wearing the academy uniform was next to her. Ferdinand was about to approach her, when he was stopped by Byleth´s hand.

"Professor, what?"

"It may be a trap"

"The Professor is right, it looks extremely fishy to me" commented Linhardt.

"You should have just come to your death" a metallic voice said from the shadows.

A few meters away from them the Death Knight appeared, his eyes completely focused on Byleth and the Sword of the Creator.

"Welcome to your tomb, you may rest here for the eternity"

Byleth noticed that there was some movement in the shadows.

"Defensive positions now!" he shouted

A spell came from the shadows, but it was easily repelled by Hubert, who retaliated with his own dark magic. Byleth decided to release a powerful fire spell to cast aside the shadows. It worked. With the new vision of the battlefield he could see at least two groups of enemies to their left and right advancing to them, the Death Knight remaining still in the middle.

"Show me your strength. Let the feast of death begin" the Death Knight said with a deadly voice.

Byleth avoided one spell directed to him and used his sword as a whip to impale the enemy mage. Alongside him Hubert and Dorothea were casting spells while Petra and Ferdinand took care of the physical enemies. Bernadetta was aiming to the enemy archers while Linhardt stayed in the middle taking care of everyone in the group. All their students' eyes were filled with determination.

"Let´s make them regret facing us. Together we will prevail!" he shouted to his students.

"Defeat is the only logical conclusion to their arrogance" smiled Ferdinand.

"Professor, Look at those panels on the floor." Said Hubert pointing what appeared to be a mosaic on the floor. "I sense a strong magic coming from them. We should be careful with them". The moment he said it a mage appeared through it, casting a dark magic spell against an unaware Ferdinand. The impact sent Ferdinand flying in front of Byleth, his lifeless eyes opened in a surprised expression.

Using the powers of Sothis, Byleth returned to the past and rushed to the platform where the mage was starting to appear. Using the Sword of the Creator he swiftly decapitated him, his enemy head rolling next to the Death Knight.

"Be careful with the panels! Enemies may appear from them!" he shouted.

Looking to the head of his dead ally the Death Knight laughed. He then looked at him.

"This room is already stained with the smell of death. Let me paint its walls with your corpse" he said crushing the head with his leg, approaching him with his giant scythe.

They both charged at each other. The Sword of the Creator was shining on his hand with each hit of their weapons.

"Why are you doing this?"

"I´m not interested in talking, let our weapons do the chatting" He then tried to impale him with the scythe, but Byleth avoided it jumping to his right. Byleth then used the Sword of the Creator as a whip, aiming to his adversary head, but the Death Knight blocked it with his scythe, entrapping his sword with it. Pulling from it he made Byleth trip in front of him.

"Your life ends now" he said, crushing his chest with his scythe. Using his last seconds of lucidity Byleth used his powers again. Returning back in time, he charged at the Death Knight, his blade impacting with the edge of the scythe.

"Show your face"

"Why would I have to do something like that?"

"I want to see your face before I kill you"

Hearing that, the Death Knight laughed.

"Give your best then"

They exchanged blows in a mortal dance. They were focused on each other, but he could hear new voices, when he took a glimpse of the situation behind him he felt relieved.

Caspar had come with reinforcements, but he didn´t expect it to be the students from the other two houses. Dimitri and Claude were leading their students and were assisting the already exhausted Black eagles.

"Secure the area, we have to assist the Professor as soon as possible" ordered Dimitri

"Reinforcements? They will die as well"

"Take care Teach, that guy doesn´t seem on the mood today" said Claude.

"I won´t let you touch them, you are mine. Everyone, take care of Flayn and the student!" said Byleth looking directly into the Death Knight´s red orbs.

"And you are my prey" he said combining the attack of the scythe with a lightning spell.

"If I want to kill him I have to overcome his strength. There is no other way around. I have to use this Sword to its finest" Byleth thought, after avoiding the attack.

Byleth started to accumulate its energy in the blade, feeling an intense aching as he did so. With each impact he blocked it started to glow brighter, until it was painful to watch.

"What are you trying to do?"

"I will show you my true strength"

Activating his crest Byleth made a thrust with all his strength. The Death Knight used his scythe to block the attack. The moment the two weapons met an explosion happened, sending both flying in opposite directions.

The impact to the ground made Byleth cough blood, but the Death Knights situation was worse, as he had received most part of the energy of the explosion. Part of his armor had melted and his scythe was shattered. His helmet was partially destroyed, allowing Byleth to see the man behind the mask.

"I welcome pain…" he murmured.

"Jeritza… Why have you been deceiving us all this time? What is your purpose?"

"Death Knight, you are having a bit too much fun" said a distorted voice behind Jeritza. Soon after, the owner of the voice appeared. The mysterious person was wearing heavy armor, adorned with red feathers in the area of the shoulders. That person was wearing a heavy shield and a long axe, but its most striking feature was the helmet, a mask colored of red and white that hided all its face.

"Don´t get in the way of my game"

"You´ll have more opportunities to play soon. Your work here is already done"

"Understood I will go" Jeritza said, disappearing into a purple cloud of magic.

"Who are you?" Byleth was exhausted from his combat with the Death Knight, but he was prepared to face this new unknown menace to protect his students.

"I am the Flame Emperor. It is I who will reforge the world."

"I don´t know what your objectives are but I promise you I won´t let you harm my students"

"Our paths will cross again" the mysterious figure said as it disappeared before Byleth couldn´t even approach.

"The Flame Emperor. What are his intentions? And why he had to abduct Flayn?" he asked himself.

"We have defeated them all Professor!" shouted an excited Caspar.

"You should be more careful Caspar. I had to use a lot of healing spells to keep you safe" complained Linhardt. Byleth then felt sudden warmth within him. "And you too Professor, you should take a better care of your body"

"How are Flayn and the other student?" asked Byleth approaching the students of the different houses.

"They are pale and the pulse is slow, but they don´t have life threatening conditions" observed Mercedes, the blue lions students, that was sitting next to them.

"We should carry them all to the infirmary" said Dimitri. "I wish we could have arrived earlier, but I am glad that everyone is alive"

"When we join forces there is nothing to fear Dimitri" smiled Claude.

"You are right, Dedue, Raphael, please bring them to the infirmary" ordered Byleth.

Despite their sizes both of them took with great care the unconscious student and Flayn. All of the students followed them to the tunnel mouth.

"I am glad that everyone is safe, but I fear that we will see more trouble in the foreseeable future. We are facing forces we barely know. We have to be more careful from now on" commented Sothis inside his head.

"You are right. We barely know anything about the mysterious unfolding around us. I will remain alert to protect my students"

"You care about your students, but they also care about you. It moves me to see such commitment"

"I guess that you are right" he said, smiling.

"Oh Teach, you are smiling, even though we have just had a tough battle. That´s the spirit"

"I am glad to see that you still have strength to be like that Professor" smiled to him Dimitri.

They headed together to the infirmary. When Byleth opened the door he saw inside Rhea and Seteth that were in front of a bed where Manuela was sleeping. A few meters away from them was Edelgard, who smiled to him when he saw him open the door.

"I´m glad to see you well, my Teacher"

"Flayn! Is that you?" Seteth rushed to their place the moment he saw her unconscious sister. "Please place her on this bed. She is too pale, we need to!..."

"Calm down Seteth, your sister is alive" assured him Rhea. "You have done a great job Professor, I didn´t expect less from you. I thank you from the bottom of my heart"

"Allow me to express my gratitude too Professor" said Seteth looking at him with a sincere smile. "It is only thanks to you and your student that she is alive"

"I did what I had to do"

"We should let them rest for the time being" said Rhea. "Seteth you are free to stay here, I am sure you want to spend the rest of the time with your dear sister and I am sure she will be happy to see you again"

"Thank you Rhea. I really appreciate it"

"Professor, if you don´t mind I wish you to accompany me to my chambers"

Byleth nodded at her and followed her. The rest of the students started to take their leave, although he could notice that Edelgard´s eyes stayed on him a bit longer than the rest of his students.

"Please sit here" Rhea offered him a chair. "I wish to know in detail what happened beneath the grounds of the monastery"

Byleth explained her everything related to their battle. When he ended his explanation she had a sorrowed expression on her face.

"I must blame myself to have accepted Jeritza as an Instructor at the monastery. I could have never thought he would be responsible of such many crimes. I will send the knights to catch him, he may confess to us their plans and the identities of the other perpetrators"

"Do you know something about the Flame Emperor?"

"I regrettably know nothing about the identity of such mysterious figure. The Church will do its best to learn about the identity and objectives of our enemies, but I am afraid it will take some time"

"I will help you with anything I can"

"I appreciate your kindness, but your most important task will remain preparing your students for their future. Besides, next month will be the battle of the eagle and the lion and I am sure that everyone will be excited with its preparation. Professor Hanneman came earlier; he said he wanted to talk directly with you. You should go see him. I apologize for taking part of your time"

"There is no problem. I will be seeing Professor Hanneman then."

Byleth left behind the archbishop´s quarters and headed to Hanneman´s office. He was on his way when he came across with Dimitri and Felix.

"Hello again Professor. Have you already talked with Lady Rhea?"

"Yes"

"I was the first that came here to ask him for a favor Dimitri, don´t forget that"

"I didn´t intend to take advantage from my innocent questioning Felix, but I apologize" he sighed.

"I have received a letter from my father" explained Felix. He asks me to return to Fraldarius territory to subdue a group of bandits that is constantly attacking the nearby towns. I wouldn´t mind going alone, but I think this will be another chance to see your strength in combat"

"I´m afraid to admit that since the tragedy of Duscur the situation in the Holy Kingdom is complicated" said Dimitri. "I have some matters to resolve with my uncle Rufus, the regent. I have to return to Fhirdiad and I hope you could accompany me"

"Both places are to the north so there shouldn´t be any problems to complete both task in a reasonable time" continued Felix

"I heard that you already completed your monthly task. Since we have two weeks until the end of the month, I think it would suppose no problem to assist us. Will you accept Professor?"

Byleth looked both of them. The solemn Dimitri and the direct Felix were like water and oil, yet he couldn´t avoid feeling there was something else to it. He had no reason to reject their offering so he decided to accept.

"I will accompany both of you"

"I´m glad to hear that" smiled Felix. "The two of us could easily handle the group of bandits, but I don´t mind if you bring the other students with you"

"I will make sure that I won´t be a burden to you Professor. I will show to you the capital of the Holy Kingdom when I am finished with this matter"

"I´m looking forward it" Byleth nodded to him. "I will tell my students then, but first I have to talk with Professor Hanneman"

"See you tomorrow" Felix said without turning back.

"I cannot thank you enough for your help Professor. I will prepare my belongings. I will tell the archbishop too about this matter. I am sure she wouldn´t mind"

Byleth headed to Hanneman´s office. He knocked the door and entered the room when he heard the Professor´s voice.

"Thank you for your help Byleth. Without you, we can´t know what would have happened to Flayn and Monica"

"Do you know the identity of the other student?"

"Yes, she was a student enlisted into the academy last year. She was supposed to finish her studies last year, but she disappeared. Everyone supposed she had just run away, but what I couldn´t believe if that she had been beneath the monastery all this time. When she recovers I would like to ask her a few questions about her whereabouts. Her disappearance may be linked to Flayn´s and the information she could provide could lead us closer to the truth"

"I´m interested in resolving that matter too"

"I´m glad to hear that. However, we must now take care of a more mundane problem. Manuela has been injured and I´m afraid that she will be unable to teach her students for some time. I would like to divide her students between the two of us to avoid causing any problems to her students. What do you think?"

"That sounds like a good idea, but Dimitri and Felix had asked me for help and I will be heading to the Holy Kingdom with my students. I won´t be at the monastery for a short while."

"Oh I see. In that case, could you take the rest of my students with you? Since they are part of the blue lions and you are heading north I´m sure they won´t have any problem joining your ranks for a while."

"I see no problem with that"

"In that case I will tell them today, treat them well Byleth, although I already know that you will be doing your best" he smiled to him.

"Leave it to me"

"By the way, how are you feeling with the Sword of the Creator? Is it causing you any problem?"

"Nothing remarkable. I had to use quite a bit today and I feel exhausted, but there is nothing more to it"

"I´m relieved to hear that. A weapon of such power would surely be quite demanding, energy wise. If you only use it from time to time I see no reason to worry about"

After parting from Hanneman, Byleth decided to tell his students about their future expeditions. He was walking through the aisles of the main building when he found Edelgard.

"Hello my Teacher, I was looking for you. Hubert has told me about the events that unfolded under the grounds of the monastery, but I wanted to hear it from you too"

He explained to her everything that had happened. She listened to his explanation with attention. "So a new enemy has appeared. At least everyone is safe. The fact that there are so many secret areas within the monastery makes me question the security measures of this place."

"I wanted to tell you something more. I will be lending a hand to Felix and Dimitri. Felix has asked me to take care of a group of bandits that is attacking some villages and Dimitri needs to go to the capital of the Holy Kingdom so we will be heading the north for the rest of this month"

"The lack of stability in the Holy Kingdom worries me, but I don´t mind accompanying you to assist them. I will tell the rest of the Black Eagles."

"We won´t be alone. Hanneman has asked me to bring the rest of the Blue Lions students with me since he will be taking care of the Golden Deer students and we are already helping two of them"

"That doubles our numbers" said a surprised Edelgard. "Understood. Since we are heading to the north I´m sure that the Blue Lions students will prove to be useful. I will tell the rest then. See you tomorrow my Teacher"

"Thank you Edelgard"

With nothing else to do he returned to his room and placed the Sword of the Creator in the sealed box. The sword was incredibly powerful, but he didn´t intend to abuse its power. "I can take care of a group of bandits with conventional weapons" he thought.

"That´s a good idea. You are an experienced warrior. I´m sure you won´t have any problem taking care of some bandits out there" said Sothis

He was sealing the box again when someone knocked to his door. When he opened it he could see Cyril in front of him.

"Seteth wants to talk with you in his private chambers"

"Thank you for telling me. I will go then"

"And thank you for saving Flayn, I was worried about her wellbeing"

Byleth was a bit surprised with Cyril´s confession. He usually just told him his errands without interacting with him.

"I´m relieved too"

…

"Professor, I´ve already told you, but I cannot thank you enough for this. Flayn means much to me, you have my eternal gratitude for saving her. I am indebted to you"

"I´m just happy she is safe."

"Yes indeed, I am overjoyed too. However, we cannot forget that these events took place in front of us. The fact that one of our officials took part in this and was possibly the kidnapper of Flayn makes me shiver. And we cannot forget about the mysterious Flame Emperor. His true motives are yet unclear. However I have an idea. I suspect that the perpetrators of this incident were behind Flayn´s blood"

"Her blood? Why?"

"The blood that flows through her veins is extremely special… and dangerous. They may intend it to use it as catalyst to cast more powerful spells, although this is just a hypothesis. If these unknown enemies want to experiment with my sister´s blood I am afraid that we must leave the monastery and go into hiding."

"Brother wait!" said Flayn coming to them, her face still pale.

"Flayn! What are you doing here? You shouldn´t be here, you need to rest, you are still weak"

"I can´t agree with your line of reasoning dear brother. I do not wish to live again a lonely life, hiding from the rest of the world without a place I can call home."

"Again?" asked Byleth.

"We have only been here for a few years" explained to him Seteth. "Since she was young my sister has attracted undesirable attention from people that wanted to take advantage from her kindness. Some of them even wanted to harm her to have access to her blood. That´s the reason why we have spent years avoiding big cities and villages. To stay safe" He then looked at Flayn. "If we stay here we may be targeted again! I wish you no harm Flayn. I think that it would be better if we abandon the monastery"

"Even if we leave the monastery behind us there is no guarantee that they won´t chase us. That is why I believe it would be safest to stay here, at the monastery. Besides, we have the protection of the Knights of Seiros and the Professor is here too" she said shyly smiling to him. "You have admitted that he is a capable fighter and he has saved me today. I am afraid that I can barely remember anything about my period of captivity, but looking to the marks in my body I am sure that without the Professor I may not be here anymore"

"I know what you mean, but even in a place like the monastery you were kidnapped."

"That means that there is no place where we will ever be safe brother. We have to be careful and hope for the best." Flayn then looked at Byleth "What if I were to join the Professor´s class?"

"That is a great idea"

"I am pleased to hear that. With the Professor nearby there is nothing to fear. Don´t you think so dear brother?"

Seteth looked at him as if he was analyzing him. "He is a capable fighter and he has proven to be trustworthy, despite his unusual appointment. Can I entrust you with Flayn´s safety, Professor?"

"It would be a pleasure. You have nothing to fear Seteth"

"I´m relieved to hear that. However, you must rest for the time being Flayn. I won´t let you accompany the Professor on his tasks until next month. Your health is more important now"

"I understand brother. Thank you Professor, I am looking forward to getting along with everyone. Please treat me like any other student"

"I will. By the way Seteth, I want to ask you for a favor. I want to use some Pegasus for my current task. Do I have your authorization to use them?"

"You have it. I´m sorry to have avoided giving you permission until now, but I needed time to make sure you were trustworthy. Now I have a better understanding of you. Please feel free to use them, but take good care of them. It would be a tragedy if we lost some of them in the battlefield"

"I will protect them too"

"Good luck on your task Professor. I will be accompanying Flayn to the infirmary"

"Bye Professor, I hope to see you soon!"

With nothing more to do Byleth returned to his room and prepared his things. There were many things he didn´t understand yet, but he was sure that if he stayed close to his students they would stay safe. "Together, we will overcome every obstacle" he thought.


	26. The road to the north

**9/15 Horsebow moon**

Byleth had to raise his voice to make everyone remain silent.

"Remember that this is not a school trip. We are heading north to take care of a group of bandits and to protect Dimitri in his travel to Fhirdiad."

"I thank you for protecting his Highness, Professor" said Dedue with his usual serious gaze.

"When I said I wouldn´t mind some reinforcements I didn´t expect something like this" Felix sighed.

"Is it wrong for you Felix? It's just like the old times"

"Enough of your talk Sylvain, I´m sure you are not here for the fighting"

"Touché" Sylvain laughed.

"Why are you always arguing? You weren´t like this before Felix"

"Let me be Ingrid"

"If we are going to Fhirdiad that means that we can visit the Royal school of sorcery there. I´m already feeling so nostalgic, don´t you Mercie?" asked an excited Annette.

"Of course Annie, how can I forget such a beautiful time?" smiled to her Mercedes.

"I can´t hear my own thoughts with such amount of noise" complained Linhardt

"Don´t spoil the moment Linhardt. The more the better. I can´t wait to fight!" shouted Caspar.

"The north is cold, but if the Professor goes I will go too"

"Thank you Petra" Byleth nodded to her. "You are free to talk during our journey, but please let´s leave the monastery already"

They followed him to the entrance of the monastery, where the horses and Ingrid´s Pegasus were already waiting.

"My Teacher, there must be some problem. There aren´t enough horses for everyone"

"The count is correct Edelgard" He then whistled.

Three pegasi appeared above them and landed in front of them.

"I have received the authorization from Seteth to use them from now on in our missions. "You, Petra and Ingrid will act as the scouts of our group to make sure that our advance is safe. I will be joining you from time to time to make sure that everyone stays close. Are you ok with your new mount?"

"Of course my Teacher. I will make sure to not let you down. I will put into practice everything I have learnt until now" she said smiling to him. Her sincere smile made him smile too.

"Our journey begins now." He said mounting his own Pegasus. "Everyone, let´s leave the monastery and do our best!"

"Yes Professor!"

With a mere move of his reins, the Pegasus started running and in a few seconds he was flying.

"The last one to arrive will have to cook for everyone"

"That´s not fair Professor! You are flying!" shouted Caspar, although his voice grew weaker as he gained height.

"Thank you Professor" he could hear Petra´s voice behind him "Thank you for letting me fly outside"

"This is just the fruits of your efforts; I hope you can enjoy it" he said looking at her.

Like that his group departed from the monastery, flying or riding it didn´t matter. They had left together and he would make sure that they return together.

….

The first part of their journey was easy. With the end of the rainy season the roads weren´t as muddy as before so the advance of the horses was faster. Besides, half of his group consisted of Blue Lions students that were taking care of the Black Eagles students as they left the dominion of the monastery.

"The wind is cold, but if we keep our path like this we will be in Galatea territory in a matter of days" commented Ingrid flying next to him. "My father's land is poor, but that doesn´t mean we neglect hospitality when it is due."

"If it isn´t too much of a burden, I thank you for your offering." He nodded to her "I will go to talk with Dimitri" He then flew closer to the ground until he was flying next to Dimitri.

"Hello Professor, I must admit that I am surprised with your skills riding a Pegasus"

"Ingrid has told me that we could rest in Galatea territory."

"It is a good option, but we won´t be there until a couple of days had passed. We will have to camp out here at least for this night, two if the weather changes and we cannot forget about possible attacks from bandits. The fact that the territories of House Fraldarius are under attack means that these bandits had grown reckless"

"Why is the situation like that? Is the kingdom short of troops?"

"Our current situation is dire and my uncle Rufus, the regent, isn´t the best suited man to have in control of a crisis. I´m still too young to succeed to the throne, but the moment I gain control of it I promise you I will resolve these problems."

"Is that the reason why you are heading to the capital?"

"That´s true. In order to prepare the succession I have to resolve some problems there. I´m sorry to make you involved in something like this, but the roads aren´t safe anymore"

"Don´t worry about that, it is my duty to protect all of you"

"That´s the answer I expected from you Professor" he smiled to him. "I wonder how our everyday life would have been if you were the Professor of the Blue Lions." He said, looking to the sky. "Forgive me Professor, I was just thinking aloud. I have nothing against you teaching Edelgard and I can´t thank you enough for your generosity, treating the other classes as your own."

"Why should I treat everyone in a different manner? I will treat all of you as students not as factions"

Dimitri looked at him surprised, before he composed himself. "You are right about that, it doesn´t matter where we come from, but what we do. Don´t you think so, Dedue?"

"I will always be by your side, your Highness. I owe you my life" The usual serious Dedue couldn´t avoid to smile to his class leader.

"I will make sure that the rest stays together. I will be going now"

"Of course Professor, leave the vanguard of the group to me"

He made sure that everyone was keeping the rhythm of their march. After checking everyone and making sure that Linhardt didn´t fall asleep on his horse, he returned to the skies. A gentle breeze was coming from the west.

"The world really looks tiny from here"

He looked to his right and saw Edelgard, flying beside him. The wind made her hair move as if it were floating in the water.

"Are you enjoying this?"

"I do, my Teacher. I´m glad that Seteth finally accepted your request"

"He had done so in exchange for saving Flayn. By the way, she will be joining our ranks from next month"

"How interesting. I will make sure to treat her as an equal. Lots of things had occurred in the last few months. I hope that for once we will have nothing to worry about, but with you by our side I´m sure we won´t be in danger"

"Since there are no enemies around us do you want to practice some aerial maneuvers?"

"Of course, I will gladly take this opportunity to learn something new"

They started with some evasive maneuvers and soon after they were joined by Petra and Ingrid too. Petra and Ingrid were really experienced with their mounts, but Edelgard was holding her own too. When light was starting to run scarce Byleth ended the lesson and approached the group in the ground.

"A few hundred meters ahead from us there is a forest glade. We will be making the camp there; the trees around us will protect us from the wind and will protect us from undesirable visits. We will march to that place to prepare our camp"

"Understood Professor!"

They started to prepare the camp. Dedue and Caspar went to the forest to get some wood while the rest of the students started to prepare the tents. Byleth had brought two large tents for his students, one for the males and one for the females and a smaller one for himself. He wanted to use this opportunity to deepen the bounds between the students of the different classes and he considered that allowing each one of his students to bring his own tent would be troublesome.

"You said that, but you have a tent for yourself" pointed out Sothis

"I want them to feel at ease when they interact with each other"

"You know that you are almost their age. It wouldn´t be that strange, but I respect your decision"

With the wood they had, Byleth casted a fire spell and started to prepare the dinner for their students. They had brought provisions from the monastery so it wasn´t a difficult task.

"Professor, can we help you?"

Byleth looked to the students in front of him. They were Mercedes and Annette.

"I don´t mind, although there isn´t much to do with the food we have"

"When we don´t have that much of ingredients it is the time when we have to be the most creative Professor!" said an excited Annette. "Besides, if we use magic to prepare it we will be training too. Don´t you think that it's a great plan?"

"You are right" seeing her energetic attitude he didn´t find motives to refuse her help.

"I will lend a hand too Professor. I know how to make some sweets and looking to the ingredients we have I have all I need to make them"

"That´s a great idea Mercie! You must try Mercie´s sweets, they are delicious"

With the help of the two Blue Lion student dinner was prepared faster than usual. They enjoyed dinner together around the fire, chatting between them. Even Dorothea sang a pair of popular songs to liven up the evening. Looking at his students getting along with each other made Byleth feel happiness inside his heart.

"If they always get along like this, there is nothing to worry about" he thought.

"You are right about that. The fact that you worry that much about them makes me happy."

"Everyone" he said, raising his voice. "It is time to go to sleep. If I find someone outside the tents without justification I will make sure that they stay outside all night."

"If you do something like that a student is going to catch a cold, although I don´t understand why someone would want to stay out with this chilly weather" said a yawning Linhardt.

One by one they entered their respective tents. Byleth did the same and extended a map of Fódlan on the floor of his tent. The lands of the north were harsh, but the terrain was bland enough that could turn into a swamp with enough rain. He wanted to make sure that they avoided those areas where the terrain was the worst.

"For now the terrain is stable, but we aren´t sure what could happen"

…

"Why don´t you use makeup Ingrid? I´m sure it will look good on you"

"I told you Dorothea that I don´t have time to bother with such things."

"But you are missing something so fun Ingrid!" said Annette.

"Are both of you teaming up against me?"sighed Ingrid.

"It's for something really important, you are cute and some makeup will only improve it" giggled Dorothea.

"Me, cute? Well, I suppose I find it all somewhat intriguing" Ingrid said a bit blushed.

"Then let me try doing something on you. Help me Mercie!"

"How is that supposed to mean I accept?!"

Edelgard couldn´t avoid smiling to the chat between her classmates and the Blue Lions students. Their friendly personality had already broken the ice between them. Even Bernadetta was more relaxed than usual.

"Talking about makeup, won´t you give it a try too Edie?"

"Me? I must admit that I´m not too fond of using makeup"

"See? I´m not alone on this matter." Said Ingrid

"Both of you are already beauties, but some makeup will certainly help. Give it a try for me Edie" she said, looking at her with imploring eyes.

"If you said it like that I feel defenseless. Very well. I will concede now, but only once"

"Only once is enough for me Edie" Dorothea smiled. "Bernie you come next"

"Why? I´m fine as I am!"

"Don´t worry, I know that" she reassured her. "We could improve some things, just that""

"I want to help too" Petra said, joining the conversation. "I can draw you a sign to avoid being possessed by the evil spirits of the forest"

"Being possessed?! Don´t say something like that at night!"

"Calm down Bernie, there is nothing that will harm you here"

"Mercie and I will be taking care of Ingrid then"

"Ok, ok, I surrender" Ingrid sighed, "But only once"

Dorothea applied some of the cosmetics she had on her face. She could feel how she applied it on the eyelids and under her eyes. She remained with her eyes closed until she was told to open them.

"Take a look to your face Edie. I´m sure you will like it" Dorothea said, offering her own pocket mirror to her.

Edelgard looked to her own reflection. The area surrounding her eyes was darker than usual, enhancing the look of her eyes. She also had a pinker color in her cheeks, like a gentle blush.

"What do you think?"

"I must admit that you are a skillful cosmetician, Dorothea" she said smiling to her.

"Thank you for your compliment. It makes me really happy to hear something like that from you. I´m not saying that you use it every day, but from time to time it won´t harm you Edie"

"I´ll consider it"

"You don´t have to change my hairstyle Anette!"

"Why not? If we change it a bit it will certainly improve the impact of this cosmetic"

"You will catch everyone´s attention" smiled Mercedes looking to Ingrid.

"That´s true, I´m already falling for you, Ingrid" giggled Dorothea.

"What?!"

Edelgard couldn´t avoid laughing to the situation unfolding in front of her. "So this is how it feels to have a normal life. I wonder how Hubert is spending his time with the rest of the students"

"I will go to clean my face outside"

"Ok, Edie, Bernie come over here, it's your turn now"

"I guess that I have nowhere to escape" Bernadetta sighed

After leaving the tent behind her, she headed to a small stream that was near the bonds of the forest glade. Even if she was at meters of distance from the male´s tent she could clearly hear some of his classmates' voices.

"You have won this game, but I promise you that next time I won´t be defeated so easily Sylvain"

"Take it easy Ferdinand, you play well. Do you want to join Felix?"

"This is not a simple school trip, Sylvain. We are heading to the north to get rid of some bandits"

"I know, but right now is the best thing we could be doing, don´t you think Dimitri"

"We should be already sleeping, but I guess that a pair of games won´t be counterproductive"

"If his Highness plays I want to do it too"

"I want to give it a try too"

"No problem Dedue, Ashe. Then we should divide ourselves into two teams, to make it easier"

"I want to give it a try too!"

"There is no need to shout Caspar; I guess I will be joining all of you then"

"No problem, your name was?"

"Hubert"

"Ok then, let´s get started with the first round, the green guy over there wants to join us?"

"Linhardt? He is already sleeping"

"The fact that he can sleep with such an amount of noise is interesting" chuckled Hubert.

Edelgard smiled hearing the chattering of the students. The fact that even Hubert was joining them was in fact heartwarming. After cleaning her face in the stream she returned to her tent. There was still light in her Teacher´s tent. "It is impossible that he isn´t hearing all the chattering coming from the two tents. I guess that he doesn´t mind." As a former mercenary it was surprising his level of tolerance, but she appreciated that from him too.

When she reentered the tent she could hear the screams from Bernadetta talking about some demons mark.

**9/17**

"We are close to the domains of my father" Ingrid informed him. "I´m sure we will be arriving there before the sun sets"

"Understood" Byleth nodded to her. "Only a bit more of effort and we will have a roof above us"

"The Goddess is merciful; the soil was too hard for my liking"

"What are you talking about Linhardt? You have spent both nights sleeping without a problem"

"Not only the quantity, but the quality is also important" he yawned. "Let´s get there already"

Byleth had noticed that his students were getting along better between them. He could feel that the barriers between the different groups were slowly disappearing.

"I guess that your little experiment did work" commented Sothis inside her head. "I´m glad to see that"

"Me too" He then looked to the rest of his students "Keep the rhythm and we will be there before the sun sets" Returning to the air he could see Edelgard and Petra in the distance. Edelgard had improved a lot since her first time and Petra appeared to consider flying her second home. On their rear was Ingrid, whose skills were also to consider. "She will be a formidable opponent next month" he thought.

"You are always thinking about training, don´t you?" complained Sothis. "If I were you I would spend all day looking at the clouds."

"If you stared like that to the sky people would think that you are mad"

"How disrespectful, but I will forgive you since you are doing your best for your dear students."

There wasn´t remarkable during their journey into Galatea territory, although the wind that has accompanied them from the west had ceased, substituted by a chillier breeze from the north.

When the sky was starting to darken Galatea Castle appeared in the horizon.

"We will soon be there. I will go first to inform my father about our arrival" Ingrid said, flying faster to the castle.

When they arrived at the gates of the castle a small group of soldiers and servants were already waiting for them. Byleth noticed that only the person in the middle was riding a horse, his hair and eyes equal to Ingrid´s.

"I welcome all of you to my humble home. House Galatea has seen better times, but we will preserve our hospitality until the end of our days. Besides you are all friends of my daughter."

"Thank you for your hospitality"

"There is no need to thank me. You must be the Professor from the monastery." He then looked to Dimitri. "Your Highness, I feel honored by your presence here"

"The honor is mine. I will never forget your hospitality"

"I´m happy to see you well too" Sylvain smiled to him

"Oh, Sylvain I´m glad to see you well. Felix is here too, it looks like the old times." Said Ingrid´s father with a smile, he then looked at everyone. "I beg that all of you are tired from the journey, please enter. The nights here are cold and it is better to stay warm inside"

When they entered Byleth realized that the Castle had seen better times. The walls were sturdy, but there were places where it was necessary a reform. After entering his room he found a pair of wool clothing. The clothes were designed for someone with a wider chest than him, but they were comfortable.

He reunited with everyone at the dining room, where they had a modest, yet fulfilling dinner.

"I´ve been told by my dear daughter that you are heading north to get rid of a group of bandits"

"They are attacking my father´s territory; we are here to assist him"

"I hope for the best. This area is poor so we haven´t experienced bandits raids, but I have heard that the situation to the north is far worse"

"At least we got rid of the idiot of my brother"

They continued their dinner talking about different topics. According to Ingrid´s father the lands around them were difficult to work due to the difficult weather conditions.

"Our land is poor, that´s why I have all my hopes in my dear daughter"

"Enough of this talk father, our guests don´t need to learn about all of our problems"

With that their conversation ended, although Byleth sensed there was something more to it.

"I hope that all of you have enjoyed the meal. Regarding your travel I highly advised to head east from here. The last rains have destroyed the wooden bridge to the north of our region and the waters are deep enough to cause problems even to horses.

"I appreciate your advice" Dimitri said. "We will not been causing any trouble. We will be leaving tomorrow"

"That´s right" Byleth commented. "I don´t want to abuse your hospitality"

"I hope for the best of your journey. Now is time to rest, I hope that everyone replenish their energy here"

Everyone returned to their respective dormitories. Ingrid was about to do the same when his father interrupted her.

"Dear daughter, I wish to speak with you about an important matter"

"I´m afraid that I´m not going to enjoy it, but you are my father"

Feeling he was about to hear something private, Byleth hurried up back to his room.

…..

The wind was blowing violently outside the walls of the castle when Byleth opened his eyes. The moon was still high in the sky so it was still early. After trying without success to sleep again he decided to leave his room.

There were no lights in the aisles, but the moonlight was enough for him to see. He was walking aimlessly when he saw a familiar blond haired girl in one of the battlements. Ingrid didn´t notice him when he approached. He could only see her back, but he could feel that she was thinking about something.

"Is something bothering you, Ingrid?"

"Professor! You have scared me, you shouldn´t talk all of a sudden, you surprised me"

"I´m sorry, I felt that you were wondering about something"

"Even if you aren´t my Professor you have noticed too, right?" she sighed. "It is about my father. He is a good man, but he is worried about the future of House Galatea. You can see it by your own eyes. We have a castle, but there are some areas in it that urgently need reparation. Furthermore, the lands around us are poor and we have to face famines from time to time. That´s why he wants me to get married as soon as possible"

"A political marriage?"

"That´s right. With my marriage he could use the money obtained from it to improve our economic situation. He had just talked with me about a proposal he had received from a noble with a rising status that is offering a hefty dowry in return for our marriage. Did you know I was once engaged to Felix´s brother? I was thirteen back then, but growing up alongside with Sylvain and Felix I wasn´t upset with that plan. However, after his death my father has kept searching a suitable husband for me, despite telling him I want to be a knight"

"That sounds harsh. Why are you forced to give up your dreams like that?"

"It is the duty to my family I guess" she sighed. "I´m not even sure why I´m telling you all of this. I guess I just wanted to vent my frustrations."

"You don´t have to worry, I won´t tell anyone. Do you know him?"

"I thank you for that. Not at all, but that isn´t unheard of between nobles."

"If you ever feel in trouble with something I will help you. It doesn´t matter if you are my student or not. I will help you without a doubt"

"I will consider it. You are really a nice person. You have helped Ashe, helped Sylvain to recover the Lance of Ruin and you are now assisting Felix and accompanying Dimitri. Thank you for taking care of the rest of the students" she smiled to him. "You should return to your room. Even a battle hardened warrior can fall ill and it would be a pity if you catch a cold"

"Aren´t you coming?"

"In a short while. I just want to feel the night breeze a bit more"

Leaving Ingrid alone he returned to his room lost in thought. A lot of his students were facing the same dilemma and he couldn´t avoid feeling sad about that. Ingrid, Sylvain, Edelgard. There were too many students that were chained with such futures. He felt sorry for them, although he particularly felt sorry about Edelgard.

"I don´t want them to give up their dreams"

"That´s just wishful thinking. You have already heard about it multiple times. That´s the system most nobles live in"

"If it could be changed"

"Are you planning to start a revolution? Even if you did, things won´t change for a while. After all these months I´ve realized that a lot of humans are afraid of change."

"You are right about that, although it is still a pity"

With those thoughts he entered his bed again, a feeling of pity in his heart.


	27. True Chivalry

**9/19 Horsebow moon**

After departing from Galatea territory the wind had grown colder, but fortunately there was no sign of clouds menacing rain. To her side Petra was already covered in fur clothes, only her eyes to be seen. A few meters from her Ingrid was wearing her usual equipment apparently unaffected by the increasing harsh conditions.

"Fódlan is too cold"

"When we fight those bandits you will forget about the cold" reassured her Edelgard.

"Despite being born in the Empire you are resisting quite well this weather, Edelgard" commented Ingrid.

"I was once in the Holy Kingdom, but I must admit that it isn´t my favorite environment."

"Oh I see, when winter comes is going to get worse, fortunately we won't be here by then."

Her Professor approached them. He was wearing his usual battle clothes and he seemed unaffected by the increasing cold wind.

"I´ve talked with Felix, we are a few miles away from our objective. Fly higher and use the clouds as cover. We need to discover the enemy position before striking them"

"Finally the moment of fighting has come"

"I told you Petra, it will be done"

"I will tell the others. If we are lucky we could finish this problem today"

"I´m sure we will smoothly end this"

"I have the same feeling" Byleth nodded to her before changing the course of his flight.

"I will head to the north, Petra you can go to the northwest"

"Then the northeast is mine" confirmed Ingrid, before heading in the aforementioned direction.

Gaining height, she was soon engulfed by clouds. She could feel the coldness trying to enter her body, but she didn´t shiver. "Petra is in a worse situation and I´m sure that she is doing her best. I mustn´t show any weakness" she thought. After a short while the clouds around her disappeared and she could see the world beneath her.

The green landscape that had accompanied them since they left the monastery had turned yellow and red, especially in the forested areas. The villages in the distance were small dots surrounded by vegetation, although she could see some smoke clouds from the distance. "One of the villages must be under attack"

It didn´t take too much time to fly to the affected area. Spirals of smoke were ascending. She realized that the fires were taking place beyond the walls of the village. "If we can arrive here in time we might save them" She then flew the fastest she could to report Byleth about her discovery. In her way she found Petra and Ingrid that were too returning to inform about their findings.

She found him flying next to Dimitri and the rest of the students. "Professor, I´ve spotted the location of the bandits. They are trying to attack a walled village. There is fire outside it, but I didn´t see any fires inside yet. We could still arrive there before the situation turns dire"

"Thank you for your report Edelgard" he then looked to the rest of the students. "You´ve heard that. The villagers need our help. March faster to our objective. Prepare your battle equipment, we will need it shortly. I will spearhead our advance with our flying units. Edelgard, Petra and Ingrid with me"

"Understood, my Teacher"

"You have heard the Professor, prepare the battle equipment and our battle formation" commanded Dimitri.

"Finally! The time to battle has come!"

"I don´t understand how you can enjoy something like that Caspar. I will be doing my healing work" said Linhardt

"I will contribute for the wellbeing of our group too Professor" promised Mercedes

"Attacking fellow commoners… That is something I can´t stand" commented Dorothea

"You are right, it doesn´t matter what their motives are. If they have resorted to killing then I will take them down" promised Ashe with a strong look on his eyes.

"We will protect them all, together" promised them Byleth, before gaining height. He was closely followed by her.

Could you see how big their forces were?"

"The smoke blocked my vision, but judging by the amount of fire surrounding the village they must be quite a force"

"We must be careful then"

"The fact that the bandits are trying to raid a fortified village surprises me. They must be reckless or desperate if they are doing something like that" commented Ingrid.

"They will pay their actions with their life"

A few moments later, they left the sea of clouds behind them and they could see the spirals of smoke in the distance.

"The smoke is increasing; we must aid them as soon as possible. They might be trying to force the villagers to open the gates." She said

"You are right Edelgard. We must alleviate the pressure. Faster!"

Flying as fast as they could, they approached the village under siege. As they grew closer she could hear the sound of the battle unfolding around it. What appeared to be soldiers from the Holy Kingdom were fighting to death against bandits at the walls of the city. They are evacuating the civilians into the city" she thought. But it was a dangerous bet, if they succumbed to the pressure of the attack and the gates were taken from them a massacre would happen within the walls of the village.

"We have to ease the tension at the gates. Spearhead formation with me!"

They dived into the battlefield following her Teacher´s command. The impact of their weapons and the weight of the Pegasi sent flying the advancing forces of the thieves.

"Who are you?" said a middle aged man riding a war horse.

"We have come to aid you; the rest of my students will arrive shortly"

"Students? That means Felix had received my message, I thank you Professor!" He then looked to the remaining villagers. "Hurry up; we must close the gates before they gather their forces again!"

The surprise attack had shattered their enemies advance, but they were quickly preparing a counteroffensive against them, sending their archers.

"Fly higher now!" shouted her Professor. "We will meet later"

"Thank you and don´t die out there!"

They flew to the heights to avoid the round of arrows directed at them and then they counterattacked. She hit with her axe one of the archers and avoided a new round of arrows. To her right, her Professor was doing the same with a silver sword, neutralizing the main menace to their Pegasi. Petra was using her throwing axe with a great accuracy and Ingrid was hitting her enemies and moving with an impressive speed. However, the numbers of their enemies were increasing.

"They are too much of them. The entrance has been secured. Retreat to the village to prepare our following steps and give some rest to your mounts.

"Understood my Teacher. Everyone! Retreat to the village"

They landed in the middle of the square. The activity around them was frenetic.

"Archers to the walls! Secure the gates. We can´t let them get through. Is that oil ready?"

"It´s not hot enough my lord" said one of the soldiers.

"I can help you with that" offered her Professor, using his magic, the oil started to boil.

"Not only a Pegasus rider, but also a mage and a swordsman. You are really surprising me Professor" laughed the commander. "I´m sorry I haven't presented myself properly. I am Rodrigue, head of House Fraldarius, father of Felix and shield of Fhaergus, although I fear that I won´t be able to hold such tittle if this village falls."

"We will defend the village at all costs" nodded to him her Professor. "My name is Byleth"

"You can count with me too" said Ingrid.

"Oh, Ingrid! It´s been a while since the last time I saw you. I appreciate your help" he then looked to Petra and her. "I appreciate all of your help. You have the gratitude of my house"

"What are your instructions now, my Teacher?"

"We have mobility on our side. We have to exploit that advantage. Fly high and attack from behind. Don´t stay too much time within their reach to avoid being exposed. Edelgard, you will attack with me the right rearguard. Ingrid and Petra will take care of the left rearguard.

"Understood."

"My forces will slow them down at the walls. Kill as many as you can. We may be able to make them retreat."

Riding again their Pegasi, they flew into the sky. The smoke clouds were irritating her eyes, but they hid their presence. She led her Pegasus into it and a short while after they were behind the enemy lines. When the enemy realized they were charging at them it was too late. Edelgard cut through the flesh and the armor of her enemies with her axe as she used the body of her Pegasus to smash some of them with its weight. Her Professor was using his sword to the same extent and Petra and Ingrid were fighting as if they had been born with a Pegasus between their legs.

"Fly higher now!" her Professor commanded to avoid the attacks in retaliation.

They avoided the arrows, although the aiming of the enemy archers was getting better. "We won´t attack them as easily as before"

"It´s true, but the more time they spent focused on us the less time they have to attack the village"

"Professor, they are moving something!" pointed out Petra.

Edelgard looked to the place Petra was pointing. A group of brigands were moving a cart full of barrels.

"They must be carrying explosives" she murmured. Her worries intensified when she saw more than one cart heading to the walls of the village. "They plan to blow up the walls!"

"I will stop them, give me coverture!" shouted her Teacher as he rushed with his Pegasus to the center of the enemy formation.

"Cover the Professor!" she shouted following behind him.

The enemy was closing its lines to avoid being overcome by them, but she didn´t plan to give up. Using her inner strength and the power of her dual crests she crushed the enemy formation. Exploiting the breach Petra and Ingrid shortly joined causing havoc between the enemy lines.

Taking a break from the fight she looked to her Professor, who was casting a fire spell to one of the carts carrying the barrels. The explosion that followed engulfed in flames the thieves within the radio of the explosion. She was relieved to see that her professor was unscathed. With every explosion the battlefield was turning into a blazing inferno. Her Professor was heading to one of the last carts when a javelin came from the flames piercing one of the Pegasus´s wings. The creature panicked and he felt to the ground.

She rushed to his position, despite the resistance of her mount, which was afraid of the flames. Noticing that one of the thieves was approaching Byleth from his back she jumped and crushed him with her axe.

"Thank you Edelgard. I owe you this one, allow me to reciprocate" he said casting a fire spell to an enemy approaching her. They fought back to back, awaiting the incoming enemies.

"If we fight together there is nothing to fear my Teacher"

"You are right, stay close, the more enemies we take down the fewer that will go to raid the village"

One after one the thieves that came to them fall and died, but there were still plenty of them.

"It is even bigger that Miklan´s gang. The thieves of the entire region must have joined forces"

One of the carts was already arriving to the gates. It was only a matter of time that they forced their way into the town, although Lord Rodrigue´s forces were drowning them in arrows and boiling oil. Petra and Ingrid were still flying around, trying to exhaust the enemy forces.

It was then when the left side of the enemy forces was engulfed in magic explosions of different sizes and colors. Edelgard couldn´t avoid smiling when she saw her fellow classmates at the other side of the hill.

"The reinforcements have arrived my Teacher"

"Just in time" he said with a light smile on his face. "Let´s press on this side too"

Dorothea, Hubert, Annette and Mercedes continued to cast spells covering the advance of the rest of the students. Dimitri, Dedue, Ferdinand, Caspar, Felix and Sylvain were charging and Bernadetta and Ashe were neutralizing the enemy archers.

The unexpected arrival of new combatants had turned the left flank of the enemy forces into chaos. She and her Professor were making their way to rejoin the rest of their forces.

"They are just a bunch of kids, kill them all!" said a brigand charging at her. He was stopped by her Teacher´s sword and swiftly decapitated.

"I won´t let you touch her. Only a few more meters Edelgard"

She could already hear the voices of her classmates.

"Attacking innocent villagers? Unforgivable!" shouted Dimitri, releasing death with his lance.

"I am Ferdinand von Aegir!" was shouting Ferdinand as he charged through the enemy lines.

"Stop getting into trouble. I need to take a good nap after this" complained Linhardt.

"Sorry for making you wait Professor, it is time to show these weaklings the strength of our swords" said to her Professor a confident Felix.

"I´m counting on you"

The explosion that they heard made them realized that the thieves had destroyed the gates, but the troops of Lord Rodrigue were already waiting for them.

"Defend the city, don´t let them kill the civilians" he shouted charging at them.

Attacked from the two fronts and from the air the enemy troops were losing their morale.

"We should run away!" shouted one of the bandits.

"Idiot, if we can get the Hero´s relic our lives will be resolved!"

"A Hero´s relic?" Edelgard thought. "I guess that House Fraldarius has another relic"

The battle continued in two fronts, but as the fight progressed the enemy forces started to disband. At first small groups of soldiers but it quickly turned into a stampede.

"Don´t let them escape. They must pay for the crimes they have committed in this land with their life" Dimitri shouted.

Some of them could escape, but most of them were intercepted and neutralized by the combined efforts of her classmates and the village troops. When the fight had already ended Edelgard looked at her surroundings. The battlefield was filled with the corpses of the thieves and some of the village soldiers. Some crows were starting to arrive to fest on the fallen, but luckily all her classmates remained alive"

"So much death, for what?" murmured Dorothea, next to her.

"We saved the village, they were not innocent"

"I know, but I can´t get used to something like this. I envy your strength Edie"

"Don´t push yourself too hard Dorothea" Edelgard comforted her. She knew Dorothea was one of the most affected by the battles they have experienced. She and Linhardt were among the most affected, but they have perfectly fulfilled their role.

She searched for her Professor and he saw him accompanied by Dimitri and Felix, talking with Lord Rodrigue.

"If you can excuse me I will be going to the Professor´s place"

"Don´t worry Edie, I´m alright. I just needed someone to talk about" she weakly smiled to her.

They were talking about the results of the battle.

"Thank you for assisting us in such a dire situation. I feared for the situation of the village, but thanks to you and your students the outcome was better than expected. Only the gate had been destroyed and although the lands around here will take some time to recover that is still recoverable. I doubt those bandits will stop any time soon. But at least this village is safe and most of his forces had been destroyed. This village was important to the late king. If we hadn't saved it, I wouldn´t have been able to face his Majesty"

"There is no need to say something like that. You and your soldiers fought with honor. As the future king of this land I can only express my gratitude to you. My father would surely be proud of you too if he could see you" assured him Dimitri.

"How foolish!"

"Pardon me son?"

"We were protecting the villagers, not your ego. I can´t care less as to whether you can bring yourself to face a dead king"

"Felix, your brother died protecting him"

"And he died like a true knight" laughed Felix, although his voice was filled by resentment. "Both of you…no… All this land is obsessed with dying for honor. Don´t you see how wrong is that way of thinking?"

"Felix, I won´t tolerate that you stain the honor of your brother, he died…"

"Protecting the king. I´ve already heard the story a dozen of times father. I suppose if I had died, you would be saying the same thing you did after Glenn´s death. If you want to die why did you call for my help? I came to improve my skills and to save civilians. There is no need to lecture me on honor. I did my duty, now if you excuse me" He left without looking back again.

A complete silence fell between them until it was broken by Felix´s father.

"I must apologize for the behavior of my son. You have been witnesses of an embarrassing behavior."

"It is in part my fault. As the leader of his class I was unable to control him"

"There is no need to apologize" said her Professor to both of them.

"The Professor is right; the most important thing right now is that we could save the village. That is all that matters"

"Felix blames me for not feeling sorry about Glen´s death, but he is wrong. I remember him every time I open my eyes and every time I go to sleep. However, I am proud of him because he decided to protect His Highness. He was true to his word and died serving the royal family. Felix cannot understand that, he is young and foolish, but I cannot really blame him. He admired his brother, after all."

"I understand Felix as well" the Professor said, briefly looking at Edelgard and Dimitri.

"So that´s how you feel about it. Felix is fortunate to have met someone like you. I hope that you can keep taking care of him."

"You don´t have to worry. I will protect all my students to my last breath"

Hearing such commitment into his words, she was moved by them.

"My Teacher, I don't want you to die for us, battle to live with us"

"Edelgard is right Professor. I appreciate your kind words, but I hope that day doesn´t come"

"I wouldn´t want to ask one more time for a favour, but I need your help to bring the injured into the town. In compensation I wish you could stay this night with us. I´m sure the villagers want to thank your assistance with a banquet"

"We don´t mind helping you. Edelgard, Dimitri, with me"

They took care of the injured soldiers while Rodrigue was bringing the dead bodies spattered around the battlefield. His forces buried the soldiers that died fighting for the village and burned those who had died attacking it. The sun was starting to set when there weren´t more corpses or injured outside.

"You have done a great job, all of you! Now let´s forget our worries for a night! This victory was obtained thanks to all of you" Byleth congratulated all of them, before heading to the gates of the town.

Listening to his words Edelgard wondered if her Professor had learnt to give this kind of speeches from his father. Looking around her she knew that his encouraging words were having effect around the students.

"After a good battle it's time for a good meal!"

"You are so simple Caspar. But I guess that a hot meal would do wonders for me. That and a good bed." yawned Linhardt.

"After a big battle we do the same in Brigid. To pay respect to our ancestors"

"My people hold the same believing. It is interesting how similar we are in some matters" unexpectedly commented the serious Dedue.

"It doesn´t matter where we come from, if our objectives are the same we can reach new heights" she said. "Let´s follow the Professor to enjoy the celebration!"

"The way you are giving us speeches definitively makes me suspect that someone is spending too much time with the Professor" giggled Dorothea. "I agree with Edie, let´s follow the Professor"

…..

The air was filled by all kind of scents. They were staying in the biggest building of the town. The students and the villagers were sharing the same table while her Teacher was sharing the bread with Lord Rodrigue and his soldiers at the bottom of the hall. He was sitting at the middle of the table and when he noticed she was watching him he raised his cup and faintly smiled to her. Feeling these little changes in her Teacher was filling her with happiness. Looking around her table she could see how the students were interacting with the locals without a different treatment between them. "If something like this works maybe in the future we could live in a world with no discrimination depending on the place and family you were born." She knew it was a fleeting event, but she wished it could work in a greater scale.

"Lady Edelgard, you should eat"

"Forgive Hubert I wasn´t focused"

"Caspar you must eat slowly, I won´t be helping you if you suffocate"

"This is too good!"

"The food around here is scarce, but we can do some great things with it to compensate" laughed Sylvain.

"Since when you have turned into a culinary expert Sylvain?" asked Ingrid.

"You should leave that title to Ingrid, eating is one of her qualities" grinned Felix.

"That was rude, but since we won today I forgive you"

"Even outside here you can find edible plants that are tasty enough to alleviate your hunger. Nature is harsh, but it can be generous" said Dimitri

"Please don´t eat the weeds" said a worried Dedue

"Looking at everyone together I feel happy" said Mercedes with a gentle smile.

"It makes me want to sing!" said an energetic Annette.

"Do you sing too Annette? I fought I was the only songstress here."

"I do it from time to time as a hobby."

"How about we sing together?"

"May I sing too?" asked Mercedes.

"Of course, the more the merrier!"

The three of them started to sing but there were quickly followed by other students and the villagers. Edelgard looked at her surroundings. Bernadetta was covering her eyes, but it was clear she was seeing everything, Linhardt had already fallen asleep next to his dinner and Hubert, who was drinking a cup of coffee, almost dropped his cup when Ferdinand started to sing next to him. She then looked at her Professor. He was looking at them with a smile on his face, wider than the one she had seen before. Treasuring the moment she let her worries slip from her mind for the time being.

…..

"We will be spending the night here" Byleth announced to his students. "However we will be leaving tomorrow. We mustn´t abuse the hospitality of the villagers since winter is getting closer. I hope that everyone gets to rest and thank you for your efforts today"

One by one they headed to the rooms the villagers had prepared to them, except Edelgard.

"Do you want to say something Edelgard?"

"I must congratulate you for our victory, with your distraction you allowed time to our main forces to arrive."

"It wasn´t a perfect plan, I fell from the Pegasus, but I thank you for assisting me"

"Talking about the Pegasus, have you found it?"

"Yes, Lord Rodrigue told me it had returned here again while we were eating. It must be injured so I plan to treat it. You are free to accompany me if you want to"

"It will be a pleasure"

He left the building accompanied by Edelgard and headed to the place where their Pegasi were staying. His own Pegasus was still there. It had an injury in his wing, but it appeared to be more embarrassed than nothing else.

"I think that it is ashamed of leaving you in the middle of a battle. It is interesting how intelligent they can be" commented Sothis inside his head.

"I´m not here to blame you" he said caressing the Pegasus´s head. "I´m here to heal you." He applied magic in the injured area and a few seconds later the injury disappeared completely.

"I must admit that your magical capabilities had increased a lot my Teacher"

"I can say the same about your flying skills. You should have some rest. We will be leaving this place tomorrow morning"

"You are right. I must admit that at first I doubted we could cooperate with the rest of the students, since we already had our own problems within our group. The fact that we were able to work together is thanks to you."

"I´m glad that all of you were able to cooperate despite your backgrounds" he said feeling happiness inside.

"However, that doesn´t mean that we have to soften. Next month we will have a difficult mock battle, but I´m confident that under your guiding we will achieve victory" she said smiling to him.

"Of course, I haven´t forgotten it. I will make sure that all of you will treasure that memory even when you leave the monastery"

"My Teacher"

"Yes Edelgard"

"Even if I leave the monastery I promise I will come to visit you. Will it be ok for you?" Edelgard asked, toying with her hair.

Hearing her question made him heart ache.

"Of course Edelgard, nothing would make me happier" he said patting her head.

"I fought you had already forgotten to resort to such technique, but I must admit that I don´t hate it" she laughed, her cheeks a bit red. "We shall be returning, you must rest too my Teacher"

"You are right"

They returned together, Byleth still feeling a light ache in his heart.


	28. For just this moment lost in time

**9/22 Horsebow moon**

"Finally the city is at sight" commented Dimitri next to him. "Fhirdiad, capital of the Holy Kingdom of Fhaergus and home of my family for centuries"

Byleth could see from the distance the white towers of the castle. In fact, most of the walls were built with the same material, giving the impression of an immaculate city, which contrasted with the barren territories surrounding it.

"The size of the towers is impressive"

"It isn´t the only thing that will impress you, I promise" He smiled to him. He then looked to the sky. "Ingrid, come over here! Send this letter to the guards at the gates." After dispatching her he looked again at him. "Security has been reinforced in the main cities of the Holy Kingdom, if I hadn´t told them in advance we would have wasted some time and that is a resource I have to make good use of. I promise you that when I solve this matter I will guide you through the city"

"I´m looking forward it"

It didn´t take too long until they arrived to the main gates of the city. Soldiers wearing the blue blazon of the Holy Kingdom greeted them as they entered the city.

"Welcome home, your Highness" bowed each one of them to Dimitri as they entered the city. Some of the soldiers joined them and formed a wall between the crowd of curious people that was starting to form and them.

"Make way to his Highness!"

The inhabitants of the city were trying to take a glimpse of the crown prince, shouting Dimitri´s name, overjoyed by the return of the prince.

"The people of the Holy Kingdom seem to have a great loyalty to Dimitri" commented Edelgard, riding her Pegasus next to him.

"Is it different in the Empire?"

"Unfortunately my contact with the people from the capital was cut to the minimum, but that doesn´t mean that I don´t worry about them" she then looked at him. "My promise remains the same my Teacher. One day I will show you the imperial capital."

"I haven´t forgotten" he reassured her.

"I´m glad to hear that" she smiled to him.

They accompanied Dimitri to the castle. An old man wearing a heavy armor approached them in a horse when they had just crossed the drawbridge.

"It´s an honor to have you here again." He said bowing to him. "Your uncle has already been informed about your arrival. He is waiting for you in the throne room.

"The pleasure is mine. Everyone, please have some rest." He then looked at him. "It would be an honor if you could accompany me, Professor"

"I have no problem"

"Don´t worry Dedue, here we are safe. I will be reuniting with you in a short while"

"As you wish, your Highness"

He accompanied Dimitri to the throne room. It was a wide hall with tapestries hanging from the walls representing hunting scenes, although the ones at the bottom of the hall were representing a knight mounting a griffin, the national symbol of the Holy Kingdom.

"You have finally arrived dear nephew" roared a voice.

The owner of the voice was a fat man with blond hair and a blond beard that was starting to turn white. He was sitting next to the throne in a more modest sit.

"You haven´t changed a bit uncle"

"One day you will thank me for this. Ruling is an unpleasant task. Most people just come here to complain. I know that the Kingdom has seen better times, but we can´t just send all our knights out there and leave the capital defenseless"

"You don´t have to worry, I will gladly assume the burdens of my duty when the time comes."

"You really sound like your father" he commented, although by the look of his face Byleth wasn´t sure if it was a compliment or not. "I´m sure you haven´t come here just to visit me. You want to prepare for the succession"

"That´s right. I want to make the preparations for this matter as soon as possible."

"By the way, who are you?"

"He is a Professor from the monastery; he and some of the students had accompanied me here"

"The members of the church had always been welcomed here. However, we should discuss this matter…"

"Oh, a new face! And his Highness has arrived too." Said a woman´s voice.

Byleth looked at the newcomer. She was a woman wearing court clothes that didn´t hide her voluptuous body and was smiling to him as if they were friends that had just reunited.

"Lady Cornelia, I thought you were at the school of sorcery"

"I have already ended my business there. Besides, as your counselor is my duty to assist you in the ruling of the country. My words mean no offense, your Highness; I will serve as loyally as I have served your uncle"

"I appreciate it" Dimitri said, although he looked uncomfortable. "However, I wish to discuss this matter with my uncle alone. Professor, thank you for accompanying me, but as my uncle was about to suggest I should discuss the technical elements with my uncle alone"

"No problem I will accompany your Professor then" offered the woman called Cornelia, approaching him.

They left the throne room behind them. Byleth was unsure about how to handle his new company so he remained silent.

"You are too quiet. I must thank you for accompanying your Highness here. It´s been a while since we had any news from him"

"I have just done my duty"

"Have you ever been to the capital before?"

"No"

"You don´t seem to like wasting words" she laughed. "I am afraid I didn´t present myself properly. My name is Cordelia and I am a court mage within the Holy Kingdom of Fhaergus. I give counsel to the regent until his Highness can assume the throne."

"My name is Byleth"

"Byleth?" she said with a strange change in her eyes. "It is an unusual name. I hope you can enjoy your stay here and thank you for taking care of his Highness. I am sure he is in good hands for the time being." They arrived to the main hall, where the rest of his students were waiting. "What a lovely group of students we have here" she said smiling to them. "I won´t be taking more time from you Professor. I leave you in good company"

"Who was she?" asked a confused Caspar.

"Her name is Cornelia. She helped suffocating an epidemic years ago, as far as I know she has been giving counsel in the court since then" commented Sylvain.

"That was a difficult year, but thanks for her help and the guidance of the royal family we overcame it" Ingrid said.

"My father didn´t let us leave our home when it started, but we could still hear it. The sound of the carts carrying the bodies of the dead is something that I won´t forget" said Annette, a bit sad expression on her face.

Looking at the reactions from the Blue Lions students he could feel they hold her in high regard.

"To fight an illness it isn´t enough to fight its symptoms, but it is also necessary to attack its origin. Don´t you think Professor?" asked Edelgard looking directly at him.

"You are right", although he felt she was referring to a different matter.

After a short while Dimitri returned. By the look of his eyes, it appeared to be that things had gone as expected.

"I´m sorry to have made all of you wait. I will guide you to the guest rooms. You are free to roam around the castle, but please don´t leave it. It will be an honor for me if all of you could share the bread and salt with me this night."

"I hope that bread and salt isn´t the only thing we are going to share" laughed Sylvain. "A good stick will do for me"

"That´s something we can agree about!" laughed Caspar.

"I will guide all of you around the city tomorrow, if you don´t mind Professor"

"There is no problem, I can wait"

"Then let me guide all of you to your rooms"

The rooms reserved for them were protected from the cold of the outside world by sturdy walls. The furniture was simple, yet elegant and the skin of a wolf was used as a carpet. When he opened the small window of the room he could feel the chilly wind hitting its face.

"Please close it quick, I don´t want you to catch a cold"

"It is interesting how well the walls can isolate the interior of the castle from the exterior."

"Since we are free to do whatever we want until we go to dinner, how about doing a bit of exploration?"

"Don´t you want to sleep?"

"I don´t mind being awaked from time to time if it is something interesting"

He left the room and walked through the deserted aisles until he arrived to the courtyard of the castle. The sky was getting grey, but it wasn´t menacing rain, looking at his surroundings he found a strange building with a dome on its top. Without thinking it twice he headed to it. The moment he entered into it he felt a sharp contrast with the temperature from the exterior.

"A greenhouse" he thought. All variety of plants was there, although what surprised him the most was the mist that was coming from a pool in the center of the greenhouse. He found Dimitri there, checking some plants.

"I hope that the room is comfortable enough for you, Professor"

"It is. How is this place so warm?"

"The exterior is harsh and cold, but the land here hides its treasures in the depths. There is an underground mass of water below the castle. The common folk think that its depths are heated by the flames of hell itself, but most scholars think the fires of the earth are what keep it warmth. In a place like this being warm can mean the difference between life and death and we have to take advantage of the scarce assets we have if we want to survive. Of course, these waters aren´t reserved for the castle. There are many watercourses that are of public access. This land, my country, may not be as beautiful as other territories, but I dare to say that it has its own qualities. If you want I can guide you to it"

"I would like to"

Dimitri picked one of the torches that was hanging next to a door and started descending the stairs. He followed him in complete silence. A few minutes later they arrived to a wider room where he could hear the sound of water flowing under him. There was a big pool in the middle.

"This place is used as a public bathroom. Feel free to use it if you want to. It´s interesting how the more you enter the depths of the earth the hotter it gets. According to the annals of history this place was intended to be the dungeons of this castle. Ironically the dungeons are located now in the tallest towers of the castle since a criminal doesn´t deserve such commodities and protection from the elements."

"In Almyra they placed their prisoners in the towers; those who are sentenced to die are hanged from there. Those who are lucky enough break their neck and die instantly. Those who aren´t are devoured by the wyverns that roam the area"

"You must have witnessed a few executions. In the Holy Kingdom the capital punishment we apply is to hang, drawn and quarter, although only against the most vicious crimes. That is the punishment that awaits those responsible of the Tragedy of Duscur when justice comes to them" he said, with a defiant look in his eyes. "However, we shouldn´t be talking about something like that in a place like this. Please accompany me; I have more to show you"

He spent the rest of the day accompanying Dimitri around the castle, when the sun was starting to set he accompanied him to the dining room, where some of the students were starting to arrive.

"Thank you for taking care of His Highness" greeted him Dedue.

"I can´t wait to eat until my stomach explodes!" Caspar shouted.

"That would be…problematic" said Linhardt next to him.

"Have you been done with your tour Professor?"

"Yes. What have you been doing Sylvain?"

"He had been chasing the female servants. What a womanizer" sighed Ingrid. "I still remember when you try to hit on my grandmother"

"Please be more quiet about it, there is no need to talk about the past now" Sylvain hurriedly interrupted her.

….

"Let the banquet begin!" roared the regent. Dimitri and her Professor were sitting next to him in places of great honor, although Cornelia was sitting next to him. The fact that one of them was sitting so close to him was making her feel a deep hatred in her interior.

"Edie, the soup is going to get cold"

"Oh, thank you"

"Are you wondering about something?"

"It´s nothing. I was just distracted."

"The amount of noise around here is something to remark" commented Hubert.

Caspar was shouting louder than usual, trying to tell something to Ferdinand with his mouth full of food. Sylvain was trying to seduce the servants that were carrying the different dishes, although he stopped the moment he saw Ingrid´s face. All of them were enjoying their time together, but the fact she was sharing the table with one of their kind was making her unable to enjoy her surroundings.

The banquet continued for a few hours more with nothing remarkable to say apart from the increasing drunkenness of the regent.

"In the name of my house I apologize for the behavior of my uncle" apologized Dimitri "I hope all of you get some rest. Let´s meet tomorrow at the entrance. What do you think Professor?"

"It is a good idea" he nodded to him.

"If you don´t mind I want to show you a place I forgot to show you before. Would you mind accompanying me?"

"No problem"

After her Professor and Dimitri departed everyone slowly started to leave the room. Caspar and Dedue had to carry Linhardt who was already sleeping. She was about to leave when she felt a presence behind her. When she turned around she could see Cornelia smiling to her.

"I´m happy to see you Edelgard. Would you want to take a walk with me?" she then looked at Hubert. "Alone"

Hubert was about to protest, but Edelgard stopped him.

"Don´t worry about me Hubert. This is the price I have to pay. I will go. Go to your chambers"

Hubert was reticent to her command, but he finally obeyed.

She followed her in silent until she opened a room. When she entered it she realized the room was Cornelia´s personal chambers.

"What do you want from me?"

"Why are you so cold Edel? I thought we were friends" smiled to her Cornelia, although her smile was devoid of all warmth.

"Don´t speak my name so lightly"

"And what are you going to do? Send your lackey to kill me?"

"Tell me what do you want from me or I will take my leave" she was disgusted for the mere fact of sharing the same room with her.

"A weapon should avoid getting so temperamental" said a voice from the depths of the chamber.

"What are you doing here?" Edelgard was shocked to see her uncle Arundel there.

"I just wanted to see my niece" he sinisterly laughed. "You should behave more politely with Lady Cornelia; she is a close friend of mine, after all. Your investigation has been disappointing so far; tell your dog to do better"

"He has a name" she could feel the ire within her trying to leave her body.

"And it will keep it as long as he contributes to our objectives. A crestless creature like him should be thankful to still be alive. You are also ruining my patience, but I guess that fortune is smiling to us. That child of the Goddess had provided us enough materials to work"

"Thanks to your plan I cannot longer use Jeritza. When will you return it to me?"

"The Death Knight, I will give it to you when the time comes, you just need to know that. Besides, I have another task for you. Thanks to the events of this month we have another of us within the monastery. You will have to hand her this" he said, handing him a mysterious sealed box. "Don´t dare to open it since it's magically sealed, unless you want to drown in your own blood. Don´t worry, she will come to you"

"I knew that the unconscious student in the infirmary wasn´t a mere coincidence"

"Keep doing your tasks as usual"

"I will do it as long as it doesn´t interfere with my own objectives"

"If everything works as expected you will have nothing to regret. Leave us alone now; you already know your instructions."

She knew she had no other choice, but to obey, but that didn´t make it easier. She left without looking at them, their mere presence made a particular itching on her right hand appear and she knew she couldn´t get rid of them yet.

…..

"Are you sure she will obey us?" asked Cornelia.

"You don´t need to worry, even if she doesn´t enjoy our company she is forced to help us if she has any hope to make her objectives come true. Besides, we have more important matters to discuss. Did you come in contact with the Professor?"

"I did, although only for a short while, yet I was able to sense a great strength within it"

"Solon says the same about him. When those pigs of the western church tried to raid the tombs beneath the Church they didn´t find the remains of Seiros. Instead they found the Sword of the Creator. Despite the lack of a crest stone this Professor seems to be able to wield it without a problem"

"I´ve heard that too, but it sounds unrealistic. To work properly it would need a crest stone"

"Unless the crest stone had always been there all the time"

Cornelia looked shocked to him.

"Are you implying that the crest stone is inside him?"

"Just like us, if my reasoning is correct it should be near the heart"

"How interesting. How could something like that happen? Is him an experiment from you?"

"I don´t have such honor. It is highly probable that our enemy has applied a similar technology to us. The crest of flames is unique in the world. Knowing her, I´m sure she wouldn´t risk using something so valuable to them without a reason. As you know, a crest by itself can´t generate energy, but it isn´t simply an inert material. I wouldn´t call it consciousness, but it has a range of freedom that no other object has. Even though a millennium has already passed the fact that it is actively reacting to the host body means that our dreaded enemy, the fallen star, still exists."

"That could possibly doom our plans. Should we kill it now?"

"Even if the idea is tenting me, we don´t have the guarantee we will succeed and I don´t want to reveal our identity yet. Even if he is the host of the fallen star he hasn´t awakened all its powers. Solon is confident we could get rid of him with enough preparation, but he still has to come with an appropriate plan"

"Understood"

"How is the situation in the Kingdom?"

"As unstable as ever. The regent is just an idiot and a womanizer. I wouldn´t worry about him, but the little Prince is eager to rule"

"He has the loyalty of his people, but there are some rotten apples in every basket. Continue your works in the shadows. The corruptibility of the humans is an asset in our favor. It still astonishes me that we come from them"

"I will do as you command, I can´t wait for the world you have prepared for us. Humans are feeble, but they are a useful disposable tool. I can´t wait to send my children to play"

"The time to fester in blood will come, for the time being we will have to remain in the shadows, only for a bit more of time"

….

The fury she had inside menaced to overcome her. She felt humiliated and powerless against them. She wished she could kill them all with her bare hands, but she knew that if she did that she could only satisfy her personal revenge and she could possible die in the process. "I´m not scared of dying but if I have to I want to die for something meaningful." The time she had left was her only opportunity to change things. "My father once tried to change things peacefully and it ended with the annihilation of my family. I don´t have the time, not the resources to try something like that". The imperial succession was advancing in complete secret. It was a risky dance on thin ice, but if it worked it would level the balance of power between her and the creatures she had to call allies.

She was so focused on her thoughts and she was so furious that she didn´t realize she was heading to one of the battlements of the castle. Reality came to her when the wind blowing from the north hit her, making her shiver. She was about to return when a familiar voice interrupted her.

"What are you doing here Edelgard?"

"My Teacher, I didn´t expect to meet someone here. Forgive me; I was just lost in thoughts. How about you?"

"Dimitri told me about the views from here and I came to see it by myself. Is something bothering you?"

"Is not something important" she said, hiding in a pocket the little box she had received, approaching him.

"Are you sure? You don´t look like your usual self"

"You see through me. Then let me answer your question with another question. Would you be willing to make sacrifices in order to achieve a better future or do nothing and let things keep their natural course?"

He looked at her what it felt like an eternity before answering.

"If the future solves the problems of our present I don´t see the problem with it"

"Even if it meant destroying the things you hold dear?"

Her Teacher remained silent for a while, looking at her as if he was trying to look into her soul.

"I wouldn´t. If I had to sacrifice my father for it I couldn´t do it"

"Oh, I see". It was a logical response, but she was disappointed by it. "I may be too different from the rest of the world due to my background" she thought.

"I wouldn´t wish for a future where you had to be sacrificed too"

The moment she heard those words leave his mouth she felt shocked, her heart pounding faster.

"Why? Why would I be worthy of that?"

"Because your existence is very important to me. If it weren´t I guess I wouldn´t have protected you that night risking my life"

She could feel a ravaging storm of feelings inside, her heart fighting to leave her body. Her inner fighting was already making her body tremble.

"You have left me speechless, my Teacher. I don´t know what to say to such honest words"

"There is no need to say anything. I know that your burden is heavy. Let me reduce the weight of it for the time being" he said, gently embracing her.

She knew that she may have to eventually face him in the battlefield in order to achieve her objectives, but in the bottom of her heart she wished it didn´t happen.

"Even if the future is uncertain, I´m glad to have met someone like you. Can I stay like this a bit longer?"

"As long as you want to"

She burrowed her face into his chest. She couldn´t hear his heartbeat, but it wasn´t strange since she could only hear hers in her ears. His body covering hers made her feel secure. "Now no one can harm me" she thought. For that fleeting moment she wasn´t the imperial princess, the future emperor or the flame emperor. She was just Edelgard.

She didn´t know how much time she stayed like that, but he was true to his promise and didn´t move.


	29. A blooming flower

**9/23 Horsebow moon**

The sun was starting to rise when Edelgard opened her eyes. She felt tired, since she had spent most of the night awaked, but that wasn´t related to the nightmares that came to visit her from time to time.

It was all fault of him. Her Teacher, who had saved her life without knowing anything about her. He, who had taken care of her even when she still kept things hidden from him. The presence of her Professor in her head had increased as time passed, but the events of last night were a tipping point. "It makes no sense to hide it anymore. I´m falling for him". The fact that she was capable of having feelings like that despite all her suffering relieved her, but it was also problematic. She wanted to share the burden of her fate with him, but she knew that it would be unwise. She also knew that in a few months everything would change irremediably. The only thing she could do was to hint her plans to him. Her Professor had demonstrated her that he worried dearly about his students, but she was unsure if he would side with her when the time came.

"The archbishop is unnaturally fond of him, but I really wish he would choose me" she thought as she sighed. "Whatever it happens I will treasure these moments for the rest of my life." These months at the monastery had been a ray of hope in her life, but no matter what she would pursue her path. "Even if I have to face you in the battlefield, my dear Teacher" she said to herself, although her heart ached as she said it.

….

"Why did you do that?"

"What do you mean Sothis?" asked Byleth while he was changing to his usual clothes.

"Comforting the little Princess like that"

"I just wanted to share her burden for a while. She has too many worries on her."

"Are you sure it is only that?"

"What are you trying to say?"

"I felt the aching of your heart. That rarely happens, but when it had happened it has been related to her."

"She is important to me"

"In what sense?"

Byleth remained silent for a while to find an answer. He had been guiding all his students during months, but it was obvious he was fond of her. The burdens she will have to endure and the future that awaited her made him feel he had to do anything to release her from her burdens, but that couldn´t possibly explain that strange sensation he had been recently feeling.

"I can´t explain it, but I wish she could be happy"

"Perhaps what you are experiencing is what humans call love"

"Love?" He had been hearing different versions of it since he started to work at the monastery so he didn´t know it that was the term he could apply to his situation. Maybe his father could resolve his doubts. "I don´t know"

"I think that there is no universal answer to this, but I would be happy if you could feel something like that. That would mean that your humanity is starting to show up"

He had to admit that he was noticing those changes too. After years travelling around Fódlan, fighting and killing he thought he would never get used to his new life, but he was wrong. The contact with his students had made him learn a lot of things and the more he knew about their backgrounds and dreams the more he wanted to protect them from any harm. Thinking about his students Edelgard´s face appeared in his mind. Feeling the increasingly familiar pain in his heart he left his room.

The first person he came across was her.

"Good morning Edelgard"

"Oh, good morning my Teacher. I must apologize for taking so much of your time last night."

"You don´t have to worry about it. I´m glad I could help you. If you ever need my help I´m here for you"

"You really mean what you say" she said, looking directly at him before directing her gaze to her feet. "I really appreciate it, when the time comes I will remember your words"

He suspected there was something more to her words but he didn´t press the matter any further. "We should be going to the main hall"

"You are right, let´s go, together"

They walked through the aisles until they reached their destination. Dimitri was already waiting there accompanied by Dedue.

"Good morning Professor, Edelgard. Since we are here I want to take this opportunity to guide all of you around the city."

"We will be leaving tomorrow morning, but for the time being I don´t have any problem"

"Let´s wait for the others"

They didn´t have to wait for too long.

"Aren´t we going to have breakfast first?" asked a confused Caspar.

"In the market there is plenty of food and I think it is a good opportunity to taste the kingdom´s gastronomy."

"If you say it like that it sounds very sophisticated, but it is just a bunch of meat with some vegetables around it" laughed Sylvain.

"Do you have something against it?" asked Ingrid.

"Not at all. You haven´t changed a bit Ingrid. At least someone hasn´t" he said as he looked at an approaching Felix.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing in particular"

"You have to come with Mercie and me to the magic academy Professor" said an excited Annette "It is a place worth a visit"

"Last night I went to the kitchens and prepared some sweets. There is plenty so I hope that everyone can take a taste of it"

"You are really nice" smiled to her Dorothea.

"And your sweets taste delicious. Won´t you try some Felix?" asked Sylvain

"I don´t like sweets. I´m going to get tired of saying something like this"

"I don´t get it, but more for me, thank you Mercedes"

"I´m glad that you liked it" Mercedes smiled with such a nice smile that Sylvain couldn´t keep looking at her for too long.

"Let´s leave. First I want to show you the main market and then we could go to the magic academy. The handcrafters of this city are really skillful so I´m sure all of you will find something of your liking"

With the sweet flavor of Mercede´s sweets they left behind the castle.

…

"Wow this looks so tasty!" was shouting Caspar.

"You should stop shouting every time you see some meat, my ears already hurt" complained Linhardt.

The market was filled with activity. Most merchants were from the different parts of the kingdom, but there were also merchants from the Alliance and the Empire. In the square there were jugglers throwing daggers for the amusement of their public.

"Look over there Professor" Dimitri said pointing to an armory. "That armory sells the traditional weaponry of the Holy Kingdom. They are specialized in halberds and lances. Do you want to give it a look?"

"Of course"

There were some soldiers guarding the shop that had a royal banner in front of it, but they bowed when they noticed the identity of Dimitri. One of them entered the shop and shortly after its owner, a middle aged man with strong arms, approached them.

"It´s an honor to see you, your Highness"

"The pleasure is mine. Could we get a closer look to the weapons you have here?"

"Of course. Regarding weaponry I think that it is better to try it yourself. Take this" he said throwing a halberd to Byleth. He expected it to be heavier, but he was surprised by its low weight.

"It isn´t heavy at all right?" laughed the middle aged man. "All the handle and the low top of the tip are made of an alloy that grants it weights as least as possible. It isn´t as strong as a silver weapon, but it is extremely durable. We even use it for construction here."

"In the Holy Kingdom, knights are always wearing heavy armor and shields. On top of that the war horses we use are trained to hold their own armor thus making our cavalry extremely heavy. In contraposition to this, our weapons are light weighed. We resist the attacks from our enemies using our defense and we counterattack with our light weapons." Contributed Dimitri.

"If we were using heavy weapons as well as heavy armor most of our soldiers wouldn´t be able to move an inch"

"Even if the Kingdom troops are strong, their armor would make them vulnerable to ranged attacks" pointed out Edelgard, who was standing next to him.

"That´s why we have our own mages, to take care of the enemy´s mages" laughed the man. "In times of peace they spend their day doing nothing but little tricks in the main square of the city, but when the situation gets bad they are a trustworthy ally, even if they are quite eccentric most of the time."

"They are not that eccentric" complained Annette accompanied by Mercedes.

"Oh, you must be one of them, I didn´t mean in a bad way, little girl." He then looked at him. "Since you are a friend of his Highness I can lend you one of these. Which one do you want?"

Byleth looked at the different lances and Halberds in front of him and chose one that had a longer reach.

"That one is usually used two handed, since is heavier than its counterparts, but I´m sure you will give it a good use. Your Highness, you are free to come here every time you want to. I always feel honored by your presence"

"Thank you. I promise to come soon to your shop"

After leaving the weapon shop they sat down next to a fountain.

"Where are the others?" Dimitri asked.

"They are still around the market. Should I go to tell them to come, your Highness?" Dedue offered.

"It´s not necessary, I guess they are enjoying their time around here. Then that makes our group the Professor, Edelgard, Annette, Mercedes and you"

"Then it is the perfect time to go to the magic academy. There are a lot of people I want to meet again that I can´t wait!" said a happy Annette.

"Me too"

"I guess that our next destination has already been decided, don´t you think Professor, Dimitri?"

"You are right about that Edelgard. Let´s go to the magic academy then, I wouldn´t want to spoil the illusions of my dear classmates"

"Hearing you say those words makes me happy" Mercedes smiled to Dimitri.

"It´s only natural since we are friends" said Dimitri, a bit blushed by Mercede´s pure smile.

"Friends" thought Byleth. Looking at all of them he had the hope they remained like that for the rest of their lives.

"Of course the Professor is also our friend. Even if he isn´t our Professor he is taking good care of all of us. Besides, he really looks like someone of our age" said Annette.

"Don´t let Professor Hanneman hear about that Annie, we don´t want to make him feel sad" giggled Mercedes.

"Even if I´m not your student you have always helped me. You could say that your actions match the very definition of a friend Professor" said Dimitri with a sincere smile, his solemn aura casted away.

"If you are friends with your Highness I will be your friend too"

"Thanks everyone" he sincerely thanked them, moved by their words. He then looked at Edelgard.

"Of course you are of great importance to me, my Teacher" she said avoiding his gaze and toying with her hair. "Besides, I owe you my life, I won´t forget that" slightly blushing as she admitted that.

Hearing those words from her made him feel that familiar aching inside him stronger than before.

"We should be heading already to the magic academy. There is so much I want to show you Professor!"

Feeling that strange warmth inside him he followed their group. Annette and Mercedes were lively chatting between them and Dimitri, Dedue and Edelgard looked more relaxed than usual.

"I´m glad to see them like that" he thought.

"I know that, but you seem to be happier about a particular someone words" commented Sothis inside his head.

"You are right about that" he admitted

"For now let´s follow the little puppies, they would be sad if you didn´t follow their rhythm"

Hearing that, Byleth couldn´t avoid smiling.

"What are you laughing about?"

"It´s had been a while since you used that word. It sounds cute coming from you"

"Are you implying that I´m not cute? How disrespectful. If you continue at this pace I will have to label you as a turtle"

"I know, I know"

…

The magic academy was guarded by two mages wearing dark clothes. They had a distrustful look on their eyes as they approached them until one of them appeared to recognize Annette and Mercedes.

"It´s been a long time since we last met Annette, Mercedes"

"Master Edmund! I´m glad to see you well"

"You were always nice to me" smiled Mercedes.

"The pleasure is mine. It seems that you have brought some friends…" when the mage looked at Dimitri he quickly bowed. "Forgive my lack of modals your Highness, I didn´t expect to see you here"

"There is no need to apologize. We are just visiting this place on behalf of my friends."

"Feel free to visit our building as you please" He then touched the steel gate in front of him that started to open by itself.

The interior of the building was strangely warm. The lamps around them were emitting different kinds of lights and the students in the room were wearing similar clothes to the mages outside the gates.

"It hasn´t changed a bit, right Mercie?"

"You are right, some things never change I guess"

"I must admit that it is the first time entering this place, but I sense a strong energy coming from it"

Dimitri was right. Byleth could feel it too. The academy was filled with magic users and he could sense in his body an electrifying feeling.

"Let´s go to the courtyard. It is a good place to take a look to the surroundings"

The rest of the group followed Annette and Mercedes through the labyrinth of aisles that unfolded in front of them the moment they left the common room.

"This place is bigger than expected" commented Dimitri.

"Not at all, most of the aisles you can see are mere illusions if you choose the wrong path…" Annette´s explanation was interrupted when Dedue crashed with a wall.

"You will get a headache"

"Are you ok Dedue?"

"I don´t really like magic" he said, touching his head.

After that they closely followed Annette and Mercedes through the labyrinth. After a short while an open space covered by a dome appeared in front of them.

"We have finally arrived. Isn´t it nice?" smiled Annette.

Nice was a strange description of the place they had just arrived, all kind of architectonical styles appeared to be used in the construction of the area. The presence of orbs of light of different colors floating above them made him think about a world closer to a dream.

"I´ve never seen a place with so much divergences combined" commented Edelgard besides him.

"Each director had applied his own personal preferences to this place. You could say that we are travelling through history when we look to the different styles around here. The dome was the last thing to be built, but that was at least fifty years ago." Mercedes explained to them

"Since we are here how about we do some training Professor?"

"You don´t waste your time Annie" smiled Mercedes.

"I don´t mind if you want to train a bit. This place is so big I´m sure we won´t get bored" Dimitri said.

"I will" he couldn´t refuse someone so eager to learn.

They started practicing all different kind of spells while the rest of the group walked around the room. Annette´s hard working personality made her try her best even if they were just practicing for a short while. Mercedes soon joined them, although she was more interested in healing magic.

"You both have done a great job" he told them when they finished and the rest of his group had already returned.

"It is a strange feeling to have a lesson from you in a place like this." Mercedes smiled.

"I can´t wait to train with you again!"

"That will have to wait, the battle of the Eagle and the Lion is next month and we can´t let you learn about our strategy. Right, my Teacher?"

"You are right Edelgard. We can try to practice after it, but next month I will be busy."

"By the way Edelgard, does the Empire have a similar place like this?" asked Annette.

"There are plenty of academies around the Empire, although I´ve never been to one of them."

"Oh I see. I´ve heard that the Empire treats in high regard its magic users. Do you have any experience using magic?"

"I´m afraid not"

"If you want you can try casting some magic. You just have to focus and canalize your energy to your hands. I´m sure that you can get great results. Give it a try"

Edelgard did as she was told, but nothing happened.

"I expected it will end like this" she sighed.

"You only need to correct a little bit your positioning." He told her correcting the position of her shoulders and back. "You need to use your hand like this" Byleth said touching her hand.

As he did a small fire orb appeared a few centimeters above her hand.

"That´s the energy I was talking about!" smiled Annette. "Are you alright Edelgard? You are a bit red"

"This place is too hot" she excused herself, avoiding his gaze. "We should be going to another place" she said, starting to walk.

"You are right about that, let´s go outside. I know a place where they sell all kind of sweets, although they can´t compared to Mercie´s sweets"

"I´m happy to know that you like them that much Annie"

"I don´t like this place too much. It´s too strange"

"Don´t worry Dedue, stay closer to me to avoid crashing with another wall"

"You did great Edelgard" Byleth said, walking besides her. "You must have a hidden talent in magic. It took me more time to cast a flame of that size"

"It was unexpected to me too" she said, her cheeks still a bit red.

"We could train that too if you want to"

"You are training with me and you are even giving me swimming lessons. I don´t want you to grow tired of me, my Teacher. I may be taking too much time from you."

"It isn´t a burden to me and I´m not tired of you"

Edelgard´s ear grew redder the moment she heard his response.

"I will consider it. This place is too hot, we should be leaving already" she said walking faster.

…..

"Nothing like a good meal after a session of work"

"I have bought some ingredients so I can make some sweets when we return to the monastery"

"That sounds wonderful Mercie. These morning´s sweets were really tasty"

"I will go to check where the rest is. As the host of this expedition it is my duty to make sure that everyone stays out of trouble."

"I will go with you then"

"Don´t worry Professor, I want you to enjoy the most of the city. With Dedue it will be enough for my safety. Take care of the rest for me. See you later" he said as he left accompanied by Dedue.

"Now it is time to buy some accessories and cosmetics. Don´t you think Mercie?"

"Like the old times" Mercedes gently smiled.

"Do you want to try something Edelgard, Professor?"

The fact that he was included made him curious.

"I don´t use any makeup"

"I must admit that would be worth seeing" laughed Annette. "But we could search some accessories. I´m sure you will find something you like. Besides, I want you to have something to remember of our little trip to the capital of the Holy Kingdom"

"I will accompany all of you then"

The four of them started to go from one vent to another. Byleth took the opportunity to search a present for Dorothea, whose birthday was approaching. Finally he found a bracelet she may like.

"You seem to remember everyone´s birthday, my Teacher" Edelgard, commented quickly understanding the purpose of the purchase.

"Not at all" complained Annette. "You didn´t remember mine"

"I´m sorry." He apologized. Making a list with everyone´s birthday had taken him some time.

"Just joking. I know if you knew you would have congratulated me. I heard that yours is in the wolf moon, will you celebrate it?"

"I don´t know". Until now he had spent his birthdays with his father and the rest of the mercenary group and everyone around him just patted his back and drank beer until they fell to the ground in his name. It didn´t see suitable that kind of celebration for the monastery.

"Even if you don´t celebrate it, I will make sure to give you something with Mercie. Oh, I´ve just realized I forgot something in the academy. Please continue with me!" she said, starting to run.

"Wait for me Annie! Professor, Edelgard. We will meet again at the main square. See you later" Mercedes said chasing her best friend.

"Should we continue?" asked Edelgard, looking at him.

"Yes, of course"

They continued walking, stopping in every place that caught their attention.

"Are you searching a present for Dorothea?"

"I already have one so there is no need to worry. I was searching something for me"

They stopped in front of a shop managed by an old man that was reading a book. There were all kind of bracelets, pendants and earrings of all sizes and colors. His eyes attention was caught by a pair of indigo earrings that had three yellowish raindrop decorations on each one of them. When he looked at Edelgard he realized they were looking at the same pair of earrings. Taking it he handed it to her.

"Do you like these earrings?"

"I do, thank you" She took the earrings and put them in her ears. "What do you think of them?" she asked a bit embarrassed.

"They look good on you" Byleth wasn´t sure his fashion senses were the best, but he didn´t dislike the design of the earrings.

"I guess that I will keep it then" she said, a bit blushed.

After buying them they headed to the main square. They didn´t have to search for too long to find the rest of the group. They were sitting next to the public fountain in the middle of the square. Most of them were already tired, yet happy. Caspar was boasting about how he had caught and beaten a burglar that had tried to rob an old lady. Ashe and Ingrid were holding a pair of books that by the look of their cover were tales of chivalry. Ferdinand was holding a new set of tea based on the national symbols of Fhaergus and so on.

"It looks like everyone had a good day" he thought.

"What did you think about your day around the city, Professor?" Dimitri asked.

"I enjoyed it"

"I´m glad to hear that. It is a pity that we have to return tomorrow, but you are free to return every time you want to. Even in winter this place has its own beauty"

"I will certainly return someday" he promised him.

"Now it's time to rest. Let´s return to the castle. Tomorrow we will start our journey back to the monastery"

….

**9/24**

As the sun appeared in the sky they left the castle behind them. A committee of soldiers accompanied them to the gates while Dimitri was cheered by those who had come to see him one more time before he left.

"We are treated like heroes thanks to you, your Highness" Sylvain joked, riding a horse.

"It is only normal. Loyalty is one of the treats of the people from the Holy Kingdom, you should apply it to your daily life too Sylvain" Ingrid said.

"You are saying that because you consider me a womanizer, right" he sighed.

"I don´t think you are a womanizer, it is a fact"

"Calm down you two, there is no need to keep these quarrels for our return" Dimitri ordered.

A few meters away from them a group of mages was waiting for them.

"To speed up our return I thought we could use the warping abilities of the most skilled magicians of the capital. It is not a usual means of travel, but we can save a pair of days of travel and we can avoid the most troublesome terrain for our horses"

"In that case you could have done it to arrive here faster" complained Sylvain.

"It wasn´t prepared until my arrival"

"You just wanted more time to play with the women of the capital"

"You too Felix? Both of you have a personal vendetta against me. My hands are clean, I promise. At least for now"

"That response gives me no confidence" Ingrid sighed.

"Don´t move and in a few seconds we will have shortened our return quite a bit"

Doing as he was told Byleth didn´t move and suddenly the plains around him disappeared and were replaced by groups of hills, greener than the ones he had got used to.

"Thank you Dimitri. Now the rest of the way depends on us. Follow me" he commanded as they returned to the monastery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The earrings are the ones that appear in the PS outfit of Edelgard.


	30. Resolution

**9/28 Horsebow moon**

"Finally, the monastery at sight" Linhardt said. "My bed is waiting for me"

"You have spent most of the journey sleeping on your horse" Caspar pointed out. "Although I must admit I´m feeling a bit tired too."

"That must be due to my birthday last night. Professor, thank you for the detail you had with me. Your present was cute too Edie. In fact I´m glad I could spend this time with everyone". She was wearing the bracelet that Byleth had bought for her and a red pendant that had the design of small roses in it.

"I´m glad to hear that" Byleth nodded to her.

"Me too" Edelgard smiled riding her Pegasus next to him.

"Did you like the mark I painted on your cheek?" asked Petra

"I really do. We look like sisters now" she smiled to her.

"We already are, in spirit"

"Oh, Petra, that was really beautiful" said a moved Dorothea. "I didn´t expect to make so many friends here at the monastery. I thought most of you would be snobs or something like that"

"Someone is" chuckled Hubert.

"You have no right to criticize me Hubert. I know that we have our differences, but I´m sincerely glad that you enjoyed your birthday"

"Oh Ferdie, that was unexpected from you, but I appreciate it"

"I just want to be at my room alone again for a while. I´m done with fighting for a while"

"I agree with Bernadetta on that matter. I think we have earned some holidays. Don´t you think so Professor?"

"No"

"As efficient with your words as ever" he sighed. "If I fall ill that will be your responsibility"

"You are always complaining Linhardt"

"I´m just pointing out facts, but you wouldn´t understand" he yawned.

Leaving them be, Byleth rode his Pegasus to the head of the column.

"Next month will be interesting. Even if our bonds had grown stronger I promise to give you a good fight Professor" Dimitri assured him.

"No matter what stands in our way the Black Eagles will be the ones to achieve victory"

"I agree with Edelgard, I can´t wait to fight all of you!" shouted Caspar.

"I thought we were already friends Caspar" laughed Sylvain.

"That´s why we will fight even harder"

"Even if it is a mock battle I can´t wait to cross blades with you Professor" grinned Felix

"My blade is ready for you" he assured him

"That´s what I wanted to hear" he laughed.

"I don´t mind if you give him a good beating, but please be easy with the rest of us. Do we have a deal?"

"No" he said lightly smiling.

"You will have to train harder if you want to have any possibility to resist him, Sylvain."

"Then why don´t you train with me Felix? If you are so strong I´m sure you can practice with me from time to time"

"Are you ill?" asked Ingrid "It´s been a while since I heard you talking about training"

"I can be serious about things like that from time to time. I´m not that lazy you know?"

Surrounded by their chattering Byleth couldn´t avoid smiling to himself.

They continued to approach the monastery. As they approached the knights, noticing them, started to open the gates.

"Greetings Professor, nothing to report!" greeted him one of the soldiers that was usually working as the gatekeeper. "Lady Rhea wanted me to tell you that she wanted to see you as soon as you returned"

"Thank you for telling me, I will go now" he then looked to his students. "All of you have done a great job. I´m proud of all of you. We will start training again from next month, but I don´t mind if you use the remaining days of this month to rest." He then looked to the Blue Lions students. "Even if Hanneman assumes the guiding of your class don´t ever hesitate to ask for my help, I will gladly lend a hand"

"There was no need to say something like that Professor. I was planning to ask for your help from now on" Annette smiled.

"Thank you Professor, even if our houses compete between each other next month, that doesn´t mean we can´t help each other after it ends"

"Of course Dimitri. I will be leaving to the audience room."

After dispatching his students he headed to the audience room, where the archbishop and Seteth were already waiting.

"How was your expedition to the north Professor? I hope that everything has worked on your favor"

"It went smoothly."

"I´m glad to hear that" Rhea smiled. "As you know next month we will celebrate the battle of the Eagle and the Lion. It is an important event for all of our students. A great reward is prepared for the team that achieves victory. Besides, no matter the result I am sure that most students will treasure that memory dearly."

"Since you will be guiding Flayn from now on I hope that you can bring your team to its fullest. I wouldn´t like Flayn to get hurt due to a lack of practice"

"Don´t worry I will make sure that everyone stays fit"

"I trust you" he said, with a light smile.

"As you know, Flayn was discovered next to a student of this very academy. Thanks to the Goddess she has recovered her health, but she unfortunately doesn´t remember anything about the identity or plans of her attackers."

"Her name is Monica. She was a student here last year, but she disappeared here under mysterious circumstances. We supposed she just had run away from the monastery, but the fact that she had been under captivity all this time makes me shiver"

"She will be joining your class. Since you will be tutoring her I have asked her to come here. Don´t be shy child, come over here"

A girl with red hair and red eyes shyly approached them from the entrance of the room.

"Nice to meet you Professor. My name is Monica von Ochs. I hope we can get along"

"Nice to meet you too. I´m Byleth, your new Professor"

"Since she had just left the infirmary she won´t be following you to the battle of the Eagle and the Lion. However, since she will be finishing her studies this year I hope you can treat her equally to the rest of your students from now on" continued Seteth.

"I may look like a frail flower, but I will show you that I can hold my own in the battlefield" she was smiling as she said that, but her eyes were cold.

"You should introduce her as soon as possible to the rest of the students."

"I will" he promised. "How is Manuela?"

"She is alive, but she sustained heavy injuries. She had reassumed her duty as a Professor, but she won´t be joining us in our trip to Gronder Field.

"In that case I shouldn´t lead my students. It wouldn´t be fair"

"Thank for worrying about me, but I want you to take part in the mock battle Byleth"

Manuela was approaching them accompanied by Hanneman.

"You took care of Hanneman´s students while I was at the infirmary. You have earned your right to take part in the fight"

"Since Manuela isn´t taking part I won´t be taking part either. However, don´t be overconfident. My students had been trained wisely and the fact that they have been with you for days means they will know how to counterattack your combat style"

"I´ll give my best shot"

"You looked really confident" smiled Manuela. "Do you remember our first battle Hanneman?"

"Of course Manuela, I underestimated you and got a good beating"

"This year may the same thing happen again if you are not careful enough Byleth"

"I don´t plan to lose"

"I already see the intensity of your commitment with the students. May the best win. I won´t disturb you anymore. I hope for the best" Rhea said dispatching them

Byleth was leaving the audience room accompanied by Monica when he came across with his father.

"It has been a while since we last met, my son. How was your little trip to the north?"

"It was a success, how about you?"

"Nothing too unusual. I would have liked to be there too. I see that you have a new student. My name is Jeralt. What´s your name?"

"Jeralt the blade breaker? My name is Monica"

"Everyone calls me like that. Blade breaker, ashen demon. It doesn´t matter how they refer to us, but what we do, right son?"

"I agree with you. Will you come to Gronder with me?"

"I would like to, but I have to ask Seteth for permission. I heard that you will be training her sister from now on. He may be more receptive from now on" he laughed. "I will be heading to my office. I need to do more…"

"Paperwork"

"Yeah. Seteth believes that future generations may be interested about what happened during our patrols, although usually nothing happens"

"That´s because they fear you"

"That´s good to hear" he laughed. "Anyway, I will leaving now. Take care"

"See you later father"

"Professor, since I will be your student from now on I would like to meet the leader of our class first"

"I don´t see any problem with that, do you want me to guide you?"

"Don´t worry, I already know that our leader is Edelgard."

"Understood. We will restart classes next month. If you don´t want to take the first lessons you can just watch"

"See you later"

…

A knock on her door made Edelgard open her eyes. She suspected who was waiting for her since Hubert had already left to send another message. When she opened the door a girl with red eyes and red hair was waiting for her.

"Edel! I´m finally able to meet you" she said, trying to hug her.

"Don´t dare to touch me and don´t use my name like this"

"Why are you so cold? I thought we were friends" she laughed, but her eyes were cold. "I think you have something for me"

She reluctantly gave her the box she had been keeping until them.

"Thank you Edelgard" she said as she opened the content of the box, picking a small blade with strange glyphs written on it.

"How is it possible to hide such a weapon in a small box like this?"

"This is nothing compared to other little tricks that we have. Thales is so nice. He knows what to give to a woman to make her happy" she said caressing the blade. It was so sharp that she cut herself, but she seemed more excited than anything to see her own blood dripping from the weapon. "I can´t wait to kill someone with this. I beg that the young Professor´s blood will be tasty" she said as she licked her own blood, a sadistic look on her face.

"Don´t dare to put your hands on him" she said, her ire increasing inside her.

"I won´t for now, if you do your part of the job. Your dear uncle is disappointed about your little progress. You should try doing better. The secrets of the monastery must be discovered if we want our plans to succeed, mainly the location of the goddesses' Holy Tomb."

"I will do what I have to, but I won´t jeopardize my own plans for the sake of your kind."

"That´s so cruel. I´m sure we will share a lot of time together from now on. If I´m left alone I may get bored and we don´t want the Professor or some other student to suffer an accident. They are so young and full of hope, my little heart wouldn´t handle the possibility they would die" she laughed. "Rest well Edelgard, let´s enjoy our time together for the best"

After she left, she had to wait for a few moments to calm down.

"What is he trying to do, bringing someone like her to this place?" It was evident that Monica had a sadistic personality and was mentally unstable. "If I don´t watch her, blood will be spilled. That blade wasn´t a normal weapon. They are up to something, but what?" She could only make conjectures about their plans, but she was sure they were planning to use it. "I need to be careful about it" she thought.

**10/1 Wyvern moon**

"Good morning everyone. Today we have new faces among us" Byleth announced.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Monica; I hope we can get along"

"I think that all of you already know me, but my name is Flayn. I can´t wait to be friends with all of you" she gently smiled.

"They will be training with us, but Monica won´t take part in our monthly task"

"Can I skip that too?"

"No Linhardt, unless you´ve got beaten up and you can´t move"

"You are joking right?" nervously laughed Dorothea.

"I´m not sure about that. I will go Professor, no need to threaten me" Linhardt sighed.

"Now we will start our class. I will be teaching you some new formations for the upcoming battle. After that we will train at the courtyard. I have to reserve the training room, but we will be practicing there too. Monica, Flayn, please take a sit"

Monica sat next to Edelgard, smiling to her. Edelgard smiled to her, but her eyes were alert. Hubert was grinning, looking at Monica with a menacing look. Flayn sat next to Ferdinand and Linhardt, the moment she sat next to him Linhardt appeared to be more awakened than usual.

After their theoretical class had ended they headed to the courtyard.

"You can sit watching if you want to rest" he said, looking at Monica.

"Don´t worry Professor, I can give a try with light exercises"

"What kind of weapon do you want to try?"

"Since I have to train my muscles again I think a dagger will do"

They started training in the courtyard in pairs, Flayn and Linhardt acting as healers of the group. Since Monica was alone, Byleth decided to train with her.

"Don´t be too harsh with me Professor" she smiled to him.

They exchanged a pair of blows.

"You are fast" he observed.

"That´s only because I have a light weapon. I won´t be doing too much in a battlefield."

After a few more blows she suddenly tripped, almost falling on him. He stopped her holding her by the wrist and taking the dagger she had.

"Be careful when you have something like this in your hands. You could have stabbed me by accident"

"My bad, I was just clumsy. You are fast Professor"

"My Teacher, if you don´t mind I can practice with Monica from now on. As you can see she needs more practice and with my armor there won´t be any issues" she said smiling to him, but the moment she looked to Monica her expression changed.

"Thank you Edel, I appreciate it"

The moment she heard that Edelgard´s face darkened, although it was only for a split of a second.

"It´s my duty to make sure you won´t harm anyone. We will be practicing from now on together. Is that ok with you, my Teacher?"

"Of course. Be careful" he said, noticing Edelgard vigilant stare on Monica.

**10/7**

As time passed Byleth noticed that no matter where she was, Edelgard was always accompanied by Monica. She was so busy she had asked him to temporarily interrupt their particular lessons. He didn´t want to put on her more pressure so he had agreed to that, but he was starting to worry about her wellbeing. She was starting to show signs of tiredness and from time to time she appeared to be absent minded in class as if she was focused on a different matter. He wanted to help her, but their time alone was nonexistent now.

As he was thinking about it he ended up arriving to the graveyard of the monastery. He was approaching the tomb of her mother when he saw someone in front of it. The man who was standing in front of her tomb appeared to be a middle aged man that was wearing dark clothes. His hair was long and brown and he was so focused looking the tomb, he didn´t notice him approaching.

"Who are you?"

The man looked at him surprised. The moment he saw him, his eyes grew wider.

"I cannot believe my eyes; you look so similar to her"

"What do you mean?"

"I apologize. I haven´t introduced myself properly. My name is Aelfric. I am a cardinal of the Church and I was just visiting the tomb of a dear friend of mine. Are you Jeralt´s son?"

"I am, how you knew?" he felt he had heard that name before when he talked with his father.

"You really look like her, like Sitri. Your mother was a dear friend of mine. The pain I felt when she passed away cannot be described by words, but I am glad to have met her son. If she was alive again perhaps…"

"Lord Aelfric, Lady Rhea is already waiting for you" interrupted him a soldier of the Church approaching them.

"It is a pity that I have to attend a meeting with the archbishop, but I have the feeling that our paths will meet once again. Could you please bring some flowers to her tomb for me? She used to like all kind of flowers. Send regards to your father too. Seeing you I feel that her sacrifice was not in vain" he smiled to him, although her smile was darkened by a shadow of sadness.

Byleth didn´t expect to find someone that knew about her mother. Not only his father, but also this Aelfric held her in high regard, yet Byleth knew almost nothing about her.

"You shouldn´t blame yourself. You were a newborn when she died" Sothis comforted him. "How about we bring some flowers to her? I´m sure she would like it"

"You are right" he thought. It had been a while since the last time he had entered the greenhouse and he didn´t mind putting some of the flowers on her tomb. "My father would like that too" he thought. He wanted to talk with his father, but he was told by Alois that he had been sent again with the Knights to resolve a dispute in the Leicester Alliance. With the lack of contact with Edelgard and his father he was starting to feel lonely.

"You have me, you know?"

"Thank you, Sothis, I really appreciate your company"

…

The last days had been a living hell for her. The constant presence of Monica was suffocating her, but she knew it was better than letting her free roaming around the monastery. Hubert had suggested killing her in an accident, but she knew that it was highly unlikely they would believe their explanations. She had finally got free of her for today when she told her she had to meet with Solon. She knew that nothing good was coming from the two of them, but she was partially relieved to be free of her presence for a short while.

"What a troublesome company" she sighed. She was standing next to the fishing pond, but she didn´t see any sight of teal hair. Her busy routine had forced her to reduce the time she spent with him to the bare minimum, but she knew it was a necessary evil if she wanted to keep Monica in check.

She was about to return to her room when she saw him heading to the greenhouse. After watching him entering the building she decided to follow him.

She saw him picking some lilies. Noticing her presence he looked at her.

"Edelgard, I didn´t expect to see you here"

"Am I disturbing you?"

"Not at all. You have been really busy these days. Is there something worrying you?"

She knew that she couldn´t tell him the truth, but that didn´t make it more bearable. "I´m sorry to have worried you. Taking care of Monica may have exhausted me a bit."

"Even if you are the leader of your class there is no need to exhaust yourself with something like that. Besides, since she won´t be taking part in this month assignment I don´t find it too problematic if you want to rest a bit from guiding her."

"I appreciate your idea, but which person could take care of her while we are focused on our task?"

Her Teacher remained silent for a moment looking to her, before he appeared to find an answer.

"Manuela and Hanneman are busy too with the preparations of the upcoming mock battle and I couldn´t ask for such a favor from Rhea and Seteth, but I think I know someone who could help me on this matter. I will tell him later, but in any case I want you to take a break from it. I don´t want you to underperform in the following battle"

"I promise you I won´t let you down, my Teacher. And I would be thankful if I can trust her to another person for a short while if that isn´t too problematic. Can I ask where are you going with these flowers?"

"I´m going to bring these flowers to the tomb of my mother"

The revelation surprised her.

"I didn´t know she had her final resting place here"

"She was working at the monastery when he met my father. They fell in love and they got me, although she died in the process"

It was strange, yet comforting to think that both of their parents met their significant other at the monastery.

"If you are ok with it I could accompany you to her tomb"

"Come with me then" he gently smiled to her.

They headed to the graveyard of the monastery. The tomb of her Teacher´s mother was a modest one with no ornaments on it. "She was young when she died" she thought, when she saw the date of her death.

"My father holds great memories from her, yet I only know her from his stories. Even though she died giving me birth, I don´t have a single memory from her. It makes me feel ungrateful to her."

She looked at him. His face was neutral, but she could sense a bit of sadness in his eyes.

"I´m sure she loved you dearly my Teacher and you don´t have to blame yourself for not remembering her. I would be surprised if you did"

"You aren´t the only one who had told me that" he smiled to her. "Thank you for accompanying me, Edelgard. I really appreciate it" he said rubbing her hair.

"You really like doing that, don´t you" she laughed. After all the stress she had to endure the last days she was grateful to be in the receiving end of someone´s affection. "Our following battle will take in the Gronder Field. It is part of the empire, but that doesn´t mean we will have it easier."

"I will make sure we win. That´s why I need you be at your best. It would be a pity if you exhausted yourself before that. I´m counting on you"

"I promise you I will give my best. And thank you. Even if it was a short while the fact that I was able to rest was thanks to you"

"If you ever need my help I will be there for you" her Professor said as he departed.

She looked at her back until she lost sight of him.

"He trusts me, yet I haven´t been able to reciprocate all this time." Her background had made her cautious about giving too much information about her and her plans to others, but she was certain he could trust him up to an extent. "Even if I cannot let him know everything about me I could at least let him know one of my inner secrets, my second Crest" she thought as she felt a familiar itching in her hand.


	31. A smile on each face

**10/8 Wyvern moon**

All of his students were waiting for his daily instructions in the classroom.

"Today I have the permit to use the training room so we will be practicing there. Since the day of our departure is approaching we will be training only the ones that are going to take part in it. Is that a trouble for you Monica?"

"I understand, but I think I still need the guiding of Edelgard in different matters about the monastery"

"You don´t have to worry about that. I have thought about someone that knows this monastery very well and could help you. His name is…"

"Byleth! Sorry for being late! I´m so happy you want me to help you. Let this Alois do his best for you!" Alois said while hugging him with his usual strength.

"Alois has accepted to resolve any doubts you may have about the monastery. I wish to have Edelgard to its fullest for the next battle. I hope you don´t mind"

"A wise decision Professor." Hubert said, looking at him with grateful eyes.

"Understood, I apologize if I caused any trouble" Monica mildly apologized, although the look of her eyes was cold.

"We don´t have time to waste. Take your positions now and run to the bottom of the room" He had made everyone wear heavy armor to train their strength.

"This is too heavy" complained Linhardt. "I am a healer. I shouldn´t be doing something like this"

"If we get outflanked you need to have enough strength to resist until reinforcements arrive."

"I will do my best too Professor!" shouted Flayn, that was covered in heavy armor and had a comical appearance.

"Ok, but I hope that you come fast in case that they attack us"

They started to run. Edelgard, Ferdinand, Caspar and Petra didn´t seem to have much problems running wearing armor, but the rest were having some difficulties. Linhardt was the slowest.

"Faster" he said, releasing some fire spells to them.

"Professor you are mad" Linhardt said, running as fast as he could and arriving to the frontline for a moment.

They continued like that for two hours.

…

"Good job everyone"

"That was merciless Professor. At this pace you will have to carry me to the battle. I can´t barely move" complained Linhardt.

"Another week like this and you will start to feel better"

"I´m not looking forward it"

"With all this sweat my makeup is ruined, Professor." Dorothea said.

"I´m sorry about that"

"You are sorry about her, but not about me? Favoritism is not allowed Professor"

"Rest for the rest of the day, we will start tomorrow again like this"

As the students started to leave, Edelgard approached him.

"I can understand the complaints of Linhardt, but I know you are doing this to improve the odds in our favor. I must thank you for giving me more time to rest"

"Alois is happy to lend a hand"

"He must like your father a lot if he wants to help you like that" she giggled. "When are we leaving the monastery?"

"We will be leaving this place the 20th. We only have 12 days left"

"I will make sure to use at its fullest the time you have granted me"

"Then do you want to resume your private lessons?"

"I would like to" she smiled, when she suddenly appeared to remember something. "Does it mean the swimming lessons too?" she asked, a bit blushed.

"Only if you want to"

"I will consider it. Is the 18th a good day for you?"

"It is"

"I will be leaving now, thank you for your help"

After Edelgard had left Byleth closed the gates of the training room. He was on his way to return the keys when he came across with Flayn, which was still wearing her heavy armor.

"Why are you still wearing your armor Flayn?"

"I was searching for my brother. I´m sure he will be surprised when he sees me like this"

He was sure he would be surprised, but he wasn´t sure if that could be good or not.

"I´m not sure if that would be a good idea"

"You really know my brother" she sighed. "He really worries about me and I appreciate that, but from time to time I would like to have time to hang out with the rest of the students. By the way, Professor may I speak with you for a bit?"

"Of course"

"Wonderful! I was hoping you might enlighten me about yourself"

"What do you mean?"

"You seem different to the rest. You could say that you possess an air of mystery. I am intrigued to say the least. You remind me of the sea. Have you seen it?"

"I have a few times" he was confused about the conversation he was having with her, but he didn´t want to be rude about it.

"The sea is vast and boundless. On the surface all seems still, yet beneath that stillness it is really deep. It is full of life but seems lifeless when you see if from the surface. And yet all you have to do is to cast a line to grasp hold of all that life"

"I don´t understand what you are talking about"

"About fishing, of course. Wait it wasn´t about that right? My bad. I was talking about the sea. When the sky darkens and the storms arrives the waters become so mighty that destroy everything on their path, but when that ends it looks like nothing has really happened. It reminds me of you. You are calm, but you have a great power within you. That is the kind of power that is needed to be a successful fisher."

"I´m not sure they are related" Being a warrior and being able to fish weren´t incompatible skills, but he couldn´t understand how they could be related to each other"

"Talking about fishing Professor, I heard that you are extremely skillful"

"My father taught me"

"Oh I see. Before we leave to Gronder Field I was thinking about doing a farewell dinner, I wanted to use a particular fish, but I am afraid I can´t remember its name. I told my problem to my brother and he surprisingly accepted so we are going to hold a small fishing tournament to find the fish I am searching for. Would you like to join?"

"When is it going to take place?"

"The 17th of this month. You are the first one I am telling about it, but I hope you can tell more people about it. I will be going to see my brother now. I can´t wait to watch your fishing skills in action Professor!"

"That little girl seems to forget easily what she says, but I like her" said Sothis, inside his head. "I wonder why I feel like liking her"

"I wonder what kind of fish she wants" he said thinking about the upcoming tournament.

"If you catch them all I don´t think you won´t be having any trouble winning the tournament. Besides, I´m sure you will win it, unless your father takes part in it"

"I hope he returns soon."

"Missing your father already, you have lately been growing sentimental. I didn´t expect a battle-hardened mercenary to change like this in a matter of months."

"If you say it like that it doesn´t sound like a compliment"

"It is though"

After talking with Sothis he headed to the cathedral. From time to time he had to answer questions sent by the students there. Although they were anonymously written, Byleth could figure out some of them by the way they expressed themselves or the topics they chose. He suspected that some of them weren´t even from students, but he didn´t have other option but to answer them.

When he entered it he could hear a chorus singing that consisted of Golden Deer students. The disparity between voices was incredible. Raphael was shouting more than singing but the worst offender was Lorenz, who was singing as if he were a soloist.

"It is painful to hear" complained Sothis. "For the sake of the Goddess make them stop"

"Ey Teach, didn´t expect to see you here today" greeted him Claude when he noticed him. "Did you come to listen to us? How does it sound, by the way?"

"It´s terrible"

"You are really honest Professor" laughed Raphael.

"Goddess, please forgive us" prayed Marianne.

"Marianne, I´m sure he isn´t referring to us, right Professor?" asked Hilda.

"You are right; the most I could hear were Raphael and Lorenz"

"The condition of my throat was just a bit off today Professor. That may be why you don´t look so pleased"

"Come on Lorenz, your voice could be heard all over the place, you are just bad at singing" laughed Claude.

"Your voice wasn´t angelical to be precise"

"Touché"

"I don´t even know why we have to do this from time to time. I feel like I´m wasting my time here" Leonie sighed.

"I did have fun, though" Lysithea commented in a lower voice

"By the way Teach, I heard of your little trip to the north with all of the Blue Lions students. When are you going to bring our entire group too? It would be fun"

"We went to fight some bandits and to protect Dimitri during his trip to Fhirdiad"

"Then we just have to take care of a bunch of people causing trouble, right? Sounds easy to me"

"I wouldn´t like going out there looking for trouble" Ignatz said in a low voice.

"You have nothing to worry, Ignatz. I´ve seen our dear Teach fight a few times and he is quite powerful. Don´t treat us so harsh this month Teach. We will continue singing; you are free to join us if you feel like doing it"

"Thank you, but I will be busy over there"

"Don´t worry Teach. Lorenz, this time try to sing _with_ us and not against us. I still have your voice in my head."

"Tsk"

Byleth sat near the entrance of the cathedral and started answering the different questions of the inhabitants of the monastery.

"There are many men in this world as stars in the sky, but you meet so few good men during your time on this planet. How does one meet a worthy partner?" he read. "I already know who is asking this" he thought. Sighing he started writing the responses to the worries of his students and colleagues from the monastery.

…..

When he ended answering to everyone´s questions it was already dark outside, the Golden Deer students had already finished their choral lessons and were nowhere to be seen. He decided to head to the library before returning to his room. Most of the students were having their dinner at the canteen, but he was interested in searching for a book about Wyvern riding. The Wyverns were ferocious beasts, but in the right hands they could cause a lot of damage in the enemy lines. Since Edelgard and Petra were already doing well on the Pegasi he wanted them to try a new mount, but before doing that he wanted to handle the basics of it too.

The aisles leading to the library were empty and a gentle breeze was coming from the exterior. He was approaching the aisle that lead to the library when he heard a voice.

"Don´t waste my time like this Kronya. Talk with me when you have discovered something"

"I can do nothing since I´m accompanied by that idiot. If I could get ri…"

"Don´t speak nonsense here. Don´t act unless being told so"

"Understood, but if we don´t act quickly they are going to find out that…"

"What are they talking about?" he thought. Carefully he took a look to the aisle of his right but he saw nothing. "How strange"

With a hand next to the dagger he had received from Edelgard he walked through the aisle until its dead end.

"What are you searching?"

"Didn´t you hear some voices over there?"

"I´m sorry, I was taking a nap, hearing that disaster of a chorus left me exhausted"

"I heard at least two people talking over there, but there is no one"

"Maybe you are hearing the echoes of the chorus inside your head or you are just tired."

"You may be right" he admitted, but a part of him was sure that what he had heard was true. Before leaving the aisle he touched the walls to both sides of the aisle to make sure there weren´t any traces of magic, but he sensed nothing. He then headed to the library.

…

**10/17 Wyvern moon**

"He almost discovered us" confessed Kronya standing next to her.

"I wish he could have killed both of you" she thought. "How could something like that happen?" she asked with a metallic voice, wearing the armor of the flame emperor.

"We were talking in one of the aisles near the library." Explained Solon, which was in his real form. His skin was pale as a corpse and he had a head of an abnormal size. "To be precise Kronya was trying to tell me she was useless when I sensed someone approaching. We had to hide behind a passage and I had to use my magic to hide any traces of magic. We were lucky I did that since the Professor was checking the walls of the aisle"

"Next time he may be luckier" she hoped

"We could have just killed him in that case. Two against one. It could have been easy"

"Kronya, every time you open your mouth you astonish me with the level of your stupidity" said a man with a pale skin like a corpse and eyes that were completely white. "A person who holds the power of the Sword of the Creator and the favor of the fallen star cannot be brought down so easily. Besides, even if you had succeeded the fury of the Church would have fallen over us. They would have discovered the truth and our heads would be already on spikes"

"Fallen Star? What does it mean?" thought Edelgard.

"Don´t be mean Thales. You know that I´m only good at killing. I thought you were ok with that when you gave me that dagger"

"Only use it if strictly necessary and only in life threatening situations. The less they know about our plans the better"

"If Edel had helped me more…"

"Don´t dare to speak my name like that. It disgusts me"

"Apologies Flame Emperor, for once I have to concede that we are on the wrong. Kronya your objective is to assist Solon and to gather more information. If you don´t comply you will be sent to research again"

"Everything but that. I´m really sorry Thales" Kronya apologized, who seemed really scared about the threat in Thale´s words.

"Make sure that your subordinates' mistakes don´t put at risk our plans. I won´t be lending a hand if you are discovered"

"I will make sure that that doesn´t materialize Flame Emperor. If everyone sticks to their plan, we won´t have any troubles. The fact that even Kronya has been admitted into the academy despite of the disappearance of that student proofs the lack of security within the monastery, but we cannot abuse our luck. Solon, I hope your works are advancing"

"They are advancing smoothly. In a matter of time you will hear about them"

Edelgard didn´t like a bit that.

"I hope that it doesn´t interfere with my own plans"

"You don´t have to worry about that. I wouldn´t handicap our own weapon for some research" Solon smiled to her, although the effect was disgusting.

"We will end our meeting here. Everyone, return to your positions" Thales said as he disappeared in a cloud of purple mist. Solon and Kronya quickly followed suit, leaving Edelgard alone.

After making sure no one was around her she took of her helmet. The world around her was still dark, but she knew that she didn´t have too much time left until the sun appeared in the sky. She hid her armor and changed to her usual clothes before returning to the monastery.

She passed through the gates when she made sure no one was watching and arrived to the lower end of the monastery. She was about to head to her room when she noticed a familiar teal hair next to the fishing pond. Her Teacher was carrying a fishing rod and a pair of buckets. The size of the buckets made her wonder how much he was planning to fish as she approached him.

"Good morning, my Teacher. What are you doing so early in the morning?"

"There is going to be a fishing tournament today. I was preparing everything to make sure I don´t lose any time searching for more buckets. And you?"

"Oh, you have been telling us about that. I´m sorry I´ve had forgotten about it. I was just taking a morning walk."

"You are free to stay if you want to"

"I will come later, but first I will return to my room" she promised.

….

"The little Princess is an early bird" observed Sothis. "She remembers me of you"

"You, on the contrary, enjoy spending your time taking naps"

"Is there something wrong with that? I quite enjoy it. I wonder how many people are going to take part in this tournament"

"I told most people I know"

As the sun started to rise the first participants started to arrive.

"Good morning Byleth. You are already here" Alois smiled. "I´ve been training since the last time I fished with you. Even if I don´t have your fathers level I will make sure to give you a good fighting"

"I´m looking forward it"

"I thought I was going to be the first, but both of you are already here" Catherine greeted them.

The rest of the participants were starting to arrive. Some of them, like Raphael were already talking about how they would cook the fish they were going to catch.

"I will catch the biggest fish of the pond!"

"I will do my best too Professor" Ignatz said walking next to his friend.

"I´m not too used to fishing, but I will give it a try" Ashe said accompanied by Ingrid.

"Oh Ashe, happy birthday" He said giving him a book of tales of chivalry.

"You did remember, thank you!" Ashe happiness was evident.

"When you finish reading it can I give it a try too?" asked Ingrid

"Of course Ingrid. I know you also like chivalry stories"

"Good morning Professor. I´m so happy to see all of you here" smiled Flayn, accompanied by Shamir and Seteth. "I´m afraid I still don´t remember the name of the fish I want all of you to catch, but I think we will have fun searching for it"

"Flayn has asked me to act as the judge of the competition so I will be the one to decide who the winner is." Shamir said. "Since this is going to be a competition we will be providing the fishing hooks. All of you will have 50 fishing hooks. There is no time limit, but the first to catch the fish that Flayn wants will win"

"I will be taking part in this tournament too. I can´t let Flayn down and I have experience in fishing. I won´t be an easy adversary" Seteth promised looking at him with a defiant look.

"This guy really has a sister complex" Sothis commented inside his head. Hearing her comment he couldn´t avoid smiling a bit.

"It seems that you aren´t taking me seriously. Well, that will be your undoing"

"Participants, take your positions!"

…

When Edelgard returned to the fishing pond most of the monastery was already there. She made her way through the different students until she arrived to the stairs in front of the fishing pond.

"Good morning Edie, are you here to watch the battle of our time?" greeted her Dorothea with a charming smile.

When she looked to the fishing pond, she quickly realized what she meant. Her Teacher was fishing next to Seteth, but judging by the look of their eyes they were in the middle of a battle. The baskets of both of them were dangerously full, but they were still fishing. Flayn was cheering both of them. She saw other students with half-filled baskets around the pond, but they weren´t competing anymore. Apart from the two of them Alois was still fishing, although by the way he was shouting it seemed that he wasn´t very successful.

"They are really doing their best"

"I fear that at this rate we will be eating fish for the rest of the month"

"I´m sure the cats will enjoy it, look around them" Claude said approaching them.

The smell of the freshly caught fish was attracting all the cats of the monastery to the fishing pond. Even some dogs were approaching the two adversaries. One of the cats was climbing her Professor and sat on his shoulder, but her Professor didn´t appear to mind.

"Teach is really popular" Claude laughed.

"You are right, you have another rival Edie"

"What are you trying to…" Her question was interrupted by the sound of a giant splash. When she looked to the fishing pond a giant shadow was moving in its depths. Her Teacher was trying to take if from the water, but it was resisting.

"What kind of monster is that?" Alois shouted surprised.

Everyone was catching their breath until the monstrosity from the depths left the pond impacting against her Teacher. The impact made him fall, but he didn´t release his grip from it. A few seconds later the fight had already ended.

"The winner of the tournament is Byleth. Congratulations. I didn´t expect to see something like that lurking beneath the surface of this pond" laughed Shamir.

"Is this the fish you wanted Flayn?"

"Yes Professor. I´m so happy, thank you! You did well too, dear brother"

"Byleth! That was impressive, that fish is almost of your size. You truly are a fishing legend" Alois laughed patting her Teachers back with his usual strength. And then he fell into the pond.

Everyone grew silent the moment they saw that.

"Oh, I did it again, wait for me Byleth, I will rescue you!" Alois shouted jumping to the pond too.

"Alois, you are wearing armor…" but he didn´t hear Shamir´s words as he jumped into the pond.

"This is too heavy, please help!"

"What an idiot" Shamir sighed.

In the end Byleth was the one to take Alois out of the water. She rushed to the pond and helped him getting out of the water.

"Thank you Edelgard"

"That was a close call, thank you for saving me Byleth"

"That could have been considered an attempt of suicide. It looks like fishing ponds are not your terrain" Shamir sighed.

"The good news is that everyone is safe" Flayn smiled. "I will make sure to prepare a good dish with the fish you caught for me"

"Flayn! I think it would be wiser if I do the preparation"

"Then let´s do it together, brother. I will make sure that our stomachs are full when we leave the monastery in a few days. Help me taking it brother"

"Of course Flayn. Professor, you have to take the rest of the buckets to the kitchen"

"Understood, Edelgard, Dorothea, please help me"

"Teach, I will lend a hand too"

"Thank you Claude"

The four of them headed to the kitchen with the buckets full of fish. It was such the amount of fish that the personal working at the kitchen let them have a bucket for themselves due to lack of space.

"What are you going to do with such amount of fish Teach?"

"I will give it to the cats"

"I´m sure they will love that" Claude laughed

The moment they left the kitchen a bunch of cats were already waiting for them. They sat next to each other at the stairs in front of the kitchen and started giving the cats fish.

"They really love you Teach" Claude laughed.

Cats were climbing on his back and one was on his head. His appearance was so strange she couldn´t about laughing.

"I must agree with Claude on this matter"

Looking at her he smiled.

"You can take one if you want" he said offering her the cat on his head. Caressing it she continued feeding the cats around it.

"I didn´t think you would get along with cats"

"I don´t really hate them and the ones around here are really mild"

"That´s very cute coming from you Professor" Dorothea smiled.

"You have lots of things hiding under the surface Teach" Noticing that Dimitri and Dedue were approaching them, Claude took one of the fishes, catching the attention of one of the cats. Hiding behind a wall he waited until Dimitri was next to them.

"Professor your skills in the fishing tournament were…"

"Your Majesty, over here!" Claude shouted, throwing the fish to Dimitri. The moment he threw it the cat jumped to Dimitri.

"Ah!"

"Your Highness!"

Dimitri and Dedue started to chase a laughing Claude around the pond. Watching the ridiculous situation unfolding in front of them she laughed.

"Edie, when you laugh you are so cute. You should laugh more often, right Professor?"

Looking at her, he gently smiled.

"You are right. I like seeing you happy"

Feeling warmth inside her heart, she continued feeding the cats and watching the chasing of the two house leaders and Dedue.


	32. Petals on the water

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I recommend listening to "A place to rest" while you read the first part of this. Just how I wrote it.

**10/18 Wyvern moon**

"Wyverns are ferocious creatures that only respect sheer strength. To gain the trust of a Wyvern you must take care of it during the initial phases of its development or defeat it in combat. The wyverns in Fódlan and Almyra lack the ability to breathe fire, but there have been reports from beasts capable of that beyond the seas of Dagda, although the scholars doubt about the veracity of such reports."

Byleth closed the book he was reading when he noticed that the outside world was already dark. "It is time" he thought as he left his room. He headed to the courtyard and waited there. Since she wasn´t still there he thought about the information he had just learnt. Wyverns were creatures with great strength. They were more difficult to tame and slower than the Pegasi but they were extremely resilient in battle. "I must talk with Petra about this". He knew that in Brigid they were used to ride wyverns and he was interested in using them in their expeditions around the continent.

"I prefer the little white horses" Sothis said

"Pegasi"

"Do as you wish, but they don´t look that safe"

"Even if we don´t use them it is interesting to learn about them in case that we have to face wyvern riders in the future"

"My Teacher, sorry for making you wait" He looked at her. She was already wearing her training clothes. He nodded in approbation.

"No worries Edelgard, I´ve just come here"

"Shall we go them?"

"Of course"

They started to walk to the underground pools of the monastery.

"In two days we will be leaving the monastery. Time passes quickly"

"You are right Edelgard, but with the train you have received I´m sure we will win the upcoming battle."

"Gronder Field is under the domain of House Bergliez. Nowadays is an area well suited for agriculture, but it has been the witness of several important battles. It was the place where took place the battle of Gronder, between Nemesis and the Adrestian Empire"

"Nemesis" he murmured as he recalled the strange dreams that had tormented him for a while. He had been more careful with the use of the Sword of the Creator since then, but he felt that there was still something lingering in the shadows.

"Fódlan has been the witness of several important battles across the history." continued Edelgard. "Some of them improved the situation of Fódlan and some of them worsened it. We don´t know when the next conflict will start so we have to be ready just in case."

Her voice was firm when she said it.

"I hope you don´t have to meet such dire times Edelgard"

"Me too my Teacher, but our future is not ours to decide" she said with a sad smile.

They have finally arrived to the pool area. The mist coming from the pools made him realized that the water was hotter than the last time he had been there. "Perhaps it is due to the coming of the winter" he thought.

"Get comfortable around the water, Edelgard. We will begin shortly" he said as he jumped into the water. After a few moments Edelgard entered the pool through the shallowest area. The combination of the mist from the water and her unusual hair and eyes made him remember the stories of spirits his father used to tell him when he was younger.

"It is hotter than before, but I prefer it like that"

"Try swimming by your own in the shallow area. You need to activate your muscles before we move to the deeper areas"

"I´m not sure I will be able to do everything by myself yet."

"You don´t have to worry, I´m here for you"

She slowly started to move in the shallow area. At first her movements were clumsy, but after a while they were starting to get smoother.

"You are doing great. Try doing the same over here. Don´t worry I will catch you if you have any trouble"

"Thank you…" she said, her cheeks stained in red.

They slowly advanced to the center of the pool. He made sure he was always close to her to avoid she could get in trouble. He realized that she was advancing with her eyes closed. "She still has fear" he thought.

"You are doing great Edelgard. There is no need to have fear. There is nothing that can harm you here. Stay still and try to open your eyes."

She slowly opened her eyes and looked to her surroundings. She tried to return to a vertical position, but the moment she did she lost her balance, hugging him to avoid sinking into the depths.

"Are you ok Edelgard?"

"Forgive me, my Teacher I was just…" She stopped what she was saying when their eyes met.

They were closer than ever before, her arms surrounding the lower part of his neck and their faces mere centimeters from each other. He could perfectly see his own reflection in her amethyst eyes. A sweet fragrance was coming from her. "It must be her perfume, I wonder what kind of perfume she uses" he thought, feeling at the same time an intense aching in his chest as if something inside him was trying to move for the first time. Both of them remained silent for a while, he didn´t know how much time they spent like that, but it felt like an eternity.

"Edelgard"

"Yes, my Teacher?"

"We should reach the edge of the pool" he said, although a part inside him was longing to remain like that.

"You are right" she said. As if she had been freed from an enchantment her face started to turn red as she took some distance from him.

Using one of his hands he advanced to the edge of the pool while he used the other one to hold hers.

"You did a great job Edelgard. Take a rest"

"It wasn´t good at all. I still need time to overcome this fear of mine" she said, avoiding looking at him.

"Relying on others is not a problem. You are fighting to overcome your fears and that´s what matters"

"Relying on others… You are right about that. Since the time you turned into my Teacher you have done a lot to ease my path. You trust me, yet I´ve never been able to reciprocate like that."

"What do you mean Edelgard?"

"I wish to show you one of my inner secrets, one I´ve told no one. I…"

"Who is there?" a voice asked.

Hearing that voice Edelgard stopped talking and hid behind him.

"It´s just me" he said.

"Oh Byleth, I didn´t expect to see you here" greeted him Hanneman.

Sensing he was approaching, Edelgard came even closer, hiding her face in his back and embracing him from behind below the water to avoid losing her balance. Her proximity was making him feel very strange.

"Byleth, are you listening?"

"Sorry, I´m just a bit tired" He was glad that the mist coming from the water didn´t give too much visibility.

"I thought I heard someone else here, but I guess I´m getting old" he laughed. "My eyes are not as strong as before too" he said, soaking his feet a few meters from him.

"Do you usually come here?"

"I come when I need to rest my body, but only in this season. Age doesn´t forgive and the thermal waters of this season do wonders to my old body. You will understand it someday. And you?"

"I just wanted to relax for a bit"

"By the way, have you felt anything new related to the Sword of the Creator?"

"Not at all, I haven´t been using it recently that much"

"If you want to I could analyze your body. Even when I´m resting I have my little machines at hand" he said, starting to stand up.

Feeling that Edelgard´s grip of him had grown stronger he refused immediately.

"Not now, I´m…just here to rest"

"Oh I see. Don´t worry, I understand" Hanneman said a bit disappointed. "I like to take my time here so don´t worry if you want to leave earlier"

"Don´t worry. I usually stay here…for a long time". Her proximity and the aching inside him were making him feel really strange.

…..

Finally Hanneman left after an hour and after he had promised him to come someday to his office.

"Edelgard, it is safe now"

"T-Thank you for hiding me" she said as she got out of the pool, her face and ears extremely red. "It is too late; I should be hurrying to my room, before someone else comes"

"You are right" he said as he applied some magic to dry her clothes. "If you want I can accompany…"

"T-There is really no need, my Teacher. Thank you for your instruction" she said as she rushed to the exit of the area.

He had never seen her like that. "That could be said about me too, though" he thought. "I really need to talk with my father". Sothis was in complete silence inside his head. He was in part relieved noticing that, although a part of him wondered if she could help him to understand the strange feeling he had begun to feel inside him. Closing his eyes, he remained still for a while, although his head was thinking about the events that had just happened.

…

Her heart was fiercely fighting to break free from her. As she entered her room she could only hear her heartbeats in her ears.

"Too close" she thought, sitting on her bed and embracing her armored bear stuffy. "I´m losing control of this" she admitted to herself. She used to pride herself upon her ability to control her surroundings, but the feelings that were blossoming inside her were dangerously growing out of control. On the one hand she was relieved to know she was capable of falling for someone, but on the other hand it was extremely dangerous with creatures like Kronya, Solon or Thales around her.

"I must be an idiot" she sighed, embracing her armored bear stuffy even stronger. She entered her bed and tried to sleep, but every time she closed her eyes she could see her own reflection in his blue eyes. "I guess I won´t be able to sleep" she thought, as she looked to the ceiling of her room.

…..

**10/19**

She opened her eyes to the sound of someone knocking her door.

"Lady Edelgard, are you there?"

"Wait a second I need to change my clothes" she said as she realized she had slept with the clothes she was wearing last night. The moment she thought about that, the events of last night started coming to her mind, making her blush again. "I need to avoid thinking about that" she thought, using the cool water of the small fountain she had on her desk she tried to cool herself down. When she thought she was ready she opened the door.

"Good morning Lady Edel…Are you ok?"

"I didn´t have a good sleep, that´s all. What do you have to report?"

"I hope that you will get a better sleep. I was able to arrange a meeting with Count Bergliez"

"Thank you Hubert, I will take that opportunity to convince him. His support will be priceless when the time comes"

"You are right Lady Edelgard. We need to take advantage of every little opportunity we can get. Has Monica pestered you yet?"

"She has been ordered to remain quiet so I guess we won´t have too much problems from her for the moment, but we have to keep alert about her whereabouts"

"Leave that to me." He said, bowing to her. "I will continue my duty as always"

"Thank you Hubert."

"You don´t need to thank me. It is my duty to serve you"

"I told you not to belittle yourself like that"

"Forgive me" he said as he left her alone.

"What should I do today?" she asked herself. They had the day free since they will be leaving the monastery tomorrow and she had plenty of time until the night, when they were going to celebrate the departing with the fishes of the tournament. She was thinking about staying in her room reading, but the nice weather coming from outside was too tempting.

"I guess I will go for a walk"

She walked around the courtyard, a spotless sky above her.

"Good morning Edie" greeted her Dorothea, who was sitting on one of the benches. "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

"Hello Dorothea. I think I do, and you?"

"Oh, but you look so tired? Something happened to you yesterday?"

"I´ve just had a bad sleep"

"Is that so? I´ve just met with the Professor. He was heading to the greenhouse, but he had the same face than you. I wonder if…"

"That is just a mere coincidence Dorothea" she said, fighting the urge to blush. "He may be tired because he had to overwork"

"I know that is due to overwork, but don´t exhaust him too much Edie. He is the Professor of us all, after all" she laughed.

"I´m not trying to monopolize him. By the way, what are you doing around here?"

"I was just waiting for Manuela. Between her injuries, the trip to the north and our upcoming journey to Gronder I´ve barely had time to talk with her"

"You really are close to each other"

"She was my mentor after all. We were together at the Mittelfrank Opera House in Enbarr."

"The Opera House. I recall watching her once, it was a pity I couldn´t see another of her performances."

"Better to leave at the peak of your career than when your sun has already set." Dorothea sighed. "That´s the world we live in"

"Time, the thing I lack too" she thought. "If you ever return to the Opera House I would like to see your acting"

"Really? That makes me happy." Dorothea smiled. "Perhaps I could sing about you, the battles you had to face, and the forbidden loves you had to endure. Oh, I can´t wait to sing about you"

"I´m not sure about what version of me you are going to portray" she said a bit embarrassed. "However, I promise watching your performance, whatever it may be"

"It´s a promise then. Thank you Edie. Oh, Manuela has already come. See you later!"

After leaving Dorothea with Manuela, she continued walking around the monastery.

"So he is tired too. That must be my fault." She felt embarrassed from leaving him like that so suddenly. "Coming from me, that was an improper way of acting. I should apologize to him, even if feel too embarrassed to do that. If I could use an axe or a sword to resolve this kind of problem everything would be easier" she sighed.

She headed to the greenhouse. The moment she entered she could smell an incredible variety of scents coming from the different plants there.

"Professor, do you like pitcher plants?"

"I don´t really hate them"

"I´m happy to hear that, they don´t need to fight for food since food comes to them. I´m really jealous about that"

Watching a more relaxed than usual Bernadetta talking with the Professor made her smile.

"I feel a presence" Bernadetta said as she looked behind her. "Hello Edelgard, please forgive me!"

"What are you saying? You have done nothing to make me mad Bernadetta"

"You were smiling and you don´t usually smile, so that means something had happened"

"Is it that wrong for me to smile? I was just happy to see you around here, having a normal conversation with the Professor"

"Oh really? I didn´t expect to hear that from you" she said a bit blushed.

"Hello Edelgard, do you want to lend me a hand?"

"Of course. What are you trying to plant?"

"I´m helping Bernadetta to plant some pitcher plants"

"If you don´t want to you don´t have to do it!"

"Bernadetta, I don´t mind lending you a hand"

They spent some time like that. She was surprised to see Bernadetta acting more sociable when she was feeling safe. "I guess that the Professor has a positive influence on her too" she thought. She knew that Count Varley was a ruthless individual and she suspected that the panicking of Bernadetta about her surroundings was related to his father. "Aegir and Varley were among the nobles that started the Insurrection of the seven. If I want my plans to succeed I will have to leave them powerless. If Bernadetta had more confidence she could be a good substitute to her own father" she thought.

"Are you happy with the result Bernadetta?"

"Thank you Professor. You have planted plenty of them for me. I must thank you for that. I will be leaving to my room now."

"Bernadetta"

"Yes Professor?"

"Try not to leave at night. If you feel hungry try to take some food before that"

"Professor! Edelgard is still here! How embarrassing!" she said as she ran away

"Don´t worry too much about her, my Teacher. She didn´t look too upset about that and I´m sure she is thankful for helping her planting all these plants"

"I hope so. Do you want to talk with me about something, Edelgard?"

"I do. I must apologize for my behavior yesterday. I was rude. I shouldn´t have run away like that"

"Don´t worry about that Edelgard. You will never be a burden to me. You should take some rest. Tomorrow will start our journey towards the Empire."

"You are right about that, but you should take a rest too"

"I will as soon as today´s celebration ends. I barely could sleep too"

"May I ask why?" she asked "Could it be? No it cannot. I´m just acting like a naive woman" she thought.

"I was just feeling strange, exhausted"

"That could be due to the temperature of the water" she said, in part relieved in part disappointed.

"By the way Edelgard"

"Yes, my Teacher?"

"What kind of perfume do you use? It smelled nice"

Hearing him she was starting to feel hot in her cheeks again.

"It´s just a perfume from Enbarr. I´m honored that you liked it, but please don´t much such questions if there are people around. I´ve just remembered that Hubert wanted to talk about something. You know that he doesn´t like to wait. I will be taking my leave"

"See you later Edelgard"

She quickly returned to her room again. As she walked through the courtyard she was having an inner fight. "I´m acting so foolish. Why am I clinging to something like this?"

The moment she entered the room she went to embrace her armored bear stuffy, which was quickly showing signs of excessive use. "I may need to ask him for another one. No, I cannot ask him something like that" she thought.

She stayed in her room for the rest of the day.

…..

The canteen was filled with life. All the students were enjoying their meal. It remembered him of the day before a great battle when he was a mercenary.

"At least in this case everyone will live"

"Apart from the poor fishes. What you did was really a slaughter, but I guess they taste delicious" said Sothis inside his head.

"This banquet is worth of the Goddess herself" laughed Alois besides him. The Professors and the members of the Church where sitting in one big table at the bottom of the canteen. The students were sitting in three large tables, each one for a different House.

"You barely caught anything Alois and you almost drowned yourself" laughed Shamir.

"Let´s skip this little detail and just enjoy our meal. Don´t you think Professor?"

"Of course"

"This fish is so delicious. It must be because you are an incredible warrior. I told you that fishing and fighting are related Professor." Flayn said smiling to him.

"You don´t say something like that when I fish for you Flayn." Complained Seteth, which was sitting next to her.

"You already know that in my opinion you are the best"

"Time passes really quickly" commented Manuela with a cup of wine in her hand. "In a few days we will hold the battle of the Gronder Field and in a few months they will graduate from this academy. It´s always sad when they leave"

"Manuela, don´t use that as an excuse to intoxicate yourself"

"I am an adult woman, Hanneman. I can get drunk if I want to"

"That´s why you don´t get any men"

"How do you dare to say something like that?!"

Ignoring the quarrel between his two colleagues he thought about Manuela´s words. He knew that when the time came his students would graduate and assume the positions that the world had prepared for them, but he couldn´t avoid feeling sad about losing contact with them.

"In that case why don´t you leave the monastery and follow your own path?" asked Sothis.

Sothis was right. Working at the monastery wasn´t meant to be a work he would do for the rest of his life, but he had grown fond of the place.

"I don´t know. For now I´m fine here"

"I will be with you, whatever it happens, but I don´t mind staying here neither"

"Professor, your fish is going to get cold!" said Flayn.

"Oh sorry"

…..

"Before everyone goes to sleep the archbishop wishes to speak" said Seteth, clearing his throat.

"I hope that everyone has enjoyed their meal." Rhea said smiling to everyone. "As you all know we will be departing at dawn to the Adrestian Empire. No matter who wins, I hope that all of you can treasure this event for the rest of your lives. May the bonds born between all of you lead to a brighter Fódlan. For now rest, I will be seeing all of you tomorrow. May the Goddess bless all of you"

After hearing the archbishop words the canteen slowly started to empty. Byleth was about to take his leave too when Seteth approached him.

"Professor Byleth, Rhea wishes to speak with you"

"Understood"

"In a few days the Battle of the Eagle and the Lion will take place. How are you feeling Professor?" greeted him Rhea with a smile.

"My students have done their best in their training. I´m confident they will achieve victory"

"The confidence in your voice denotes the fruits of your work. I cannot wait to see your progress with your students. Since most of our forces will be leaving the monastery I want you to bring the box containing the Sword of the Creator with us. I think it will be safer with us. You don´t have to worry. I will return it to you when this event has ended."

"Understood"

"May I ask if you have got used to the Sword? A weapon of such power must be exigent to its wielder."

"I haven´t recently used it, but I´m certain it contains a great power."

"Yes indeed, but I am confident that you will use it for great purposes. Have you grown accustomed to living in the monastery?"

Byleth thought about her question. He was getting used to it, but he wasn´t sure if he would stay for the rest of his life there.

"For the moment I´m enjoying it"

"I am glad to hear that. I hope that one day you will call this place home" she said smiling to him, although the way she looked at him made him feel she was looking through him.

"I will bring the Sword then"

After returning he gave her the box with the sealed sword inside it. The rest of the people had already left, the light from the torches their only companions.

"Thank you Professor. I will not take more time from you. I hope you rest well"

"Thank you Lady Rhea"

"There is no need to call me like that. You can just call me Rhea."

"I will remember it. When is my father going to return?"

"I must apologize from taking so much time from both of you, but I promise you will see him again next month. I do not wish to disturb father and son like this. In fact seeing both of you reminds me of my mother" she said looking to the sky through the window, her eyes covered in clouds of sadness.

"I´m sorry for your loss". Imagining losing his father made him shiver by the mere thought of it so he couldn´t avoid feeling sorry about her.

"Don´t worry Professor. Even if I miss her I still have a lot of people that care about me." She said smiling to him. "I won´t take more time from you, good night Professor"

"Good night"

He returned to his room. He had already prepared all the things necessary for their journey. "I hope that everyone can get enough rest" he thought.

"In that case you should be doing it too. That´s the purpose of a Professor right? If you fall asleep in the middle of the trip you will embarrass all of your students. Just do as I do"

"You are right" he said smiling. "I need to be fit to make sure that everyone is at its best"

As he said that he entered his bed. "So tomorrow starts the journey to the battle we have been training for months. I will make sure they win" he promised as he fell asleep.


	33. Blue skies and a battle

**10/20 Wyvern moon**

A gentle breeze was coming from the south as they started their journey to the Empire dominions. All of them were riding horses since the Pegasi were being carried by the members of the Church. They were the spearhead of the Black Eagle students. It had been the first time he had seen such amount of students since most of them were attending their classes in other facilities of the church. The other two classes had their own group and each House was separated from the other by the carts of the members of the Church.

"I can´t wait to fight!"

"Caspar, we have just left and you are already looking for a fight. When will you ever change?"

"The same could be said about you Linhardt."

"For once we are heading to the south. It won´t be a trip to the capital, but it is better than nothing" smiled Dorothea. "Don´t you think Professor? If you ever come to Enbarr you must go the Opera House. You will enjoy it. Of course Edie is invited too"

"I promise I will go" he said.

"You can count with me too." Edelgard smiled to her, although the moment their eyes met she lightly blushed. "I will keep true to my promise, my Teacher. I hope that Enbarr is of your liking"

"It will" he assured her. Even though he had travelled around Fódlan and beyond, his group had always avoided the big cities. "The skirmishes between nobles are more frequent in the countryside and there isn´t so much competition" had told him his father.

"I can´t wait the coming of that day" smiled Dorothea.

"That´s not fair Professor, you are showing again favoritism, but travelling to another place must be troublesome so I guess I don´t mind"

"How can you disagree about something and give up in the same phrase? I want to go too Professor!" shouted Caspar.

"I will be joining all of you then. I will take the occasion to repay everything you have done for me as a Professor" said Ferdinand.

"I don´t mind if you don´t use it as an opportunity to talk about your nobility"

"Don´t worry Dorothea. I just want to share some time with all of you. Besides, I want to show our Professor that I´m better than Edelgard on matters like this"

"I am afraid to break your dreams Ferdinand, but you don´t have any opportunity to win against Lady Edelgard. I will accompany all of you then, for Lady Edelgard´s wellbeing."

"Both of you haven´t changed at all" Dorothea sighed. "But I guess that this is the way you are"

"I want to visit the capital too. I will use it as an opportunity to learn more about Fódlan"

"I really don´t want to be outside on a long trip, but I guess that if the Professor and the rest are there I could go" Bernadetta said in a low voice.

"Hearing that coming from you makes me happy Bernie!"

Feeling happy about their small chattering Byleth remained silent, guiding them in their path.

…..

As they lost sight of the monastery the terrain around them started to change. The mountains that were a common sight in the lands of Garreg Mach changed into hills and scattered trees. The sun was still high in the sky and the visibility was excellent with not a single cloud in the sky.

"In a few moments will be entering the Adrestian Empire. When we first met in Rhemire we were on the west side of the empire, but the eastern side is more notorious for its gentle weather and fertile lands. I must admit that is strange to return to the Empire with you by my side" commented Edelgard

"You once wanted me to work for the imperial army"

"I know, but I think I can´t offer you something like that anymore. You are more valuable to me than a simple soldier."

Hearing her words made him happy.

"You are valuable to me too."

"Thank you for your sincere words, my Teacher, with you by my side I´m certain that there is nothing that can stop us"

"Of course, we will win this fight and the ones to come"

After a short while, they arrived to the border between the territories of the Leicester Alliance and those of the Empire. A group of soldier was already waiting for them.

"Princess Edelgard, we are pleased to see you well" said the leader of the committee. "For security reasons we wish to escort you until you arrive to the domains of House Bergliez"

"Thank you, although I highly doubt that thieves would dare to attack a group like this. Your company is welcome, but I wish to remain with the rest of the students here"

"As you wish Princess Edelgard"

Leaving behind the streams of the Airmid River they entered into the Empire territory.

….

**10/21 (at dusk)**

"We will establish the camp here, orders from Seteth" announced Byleth. "The battle will start tomorrow at noon, so make sure that all of you have rested enough. I want all of you prepared at dawn, no exceptions. We will meet at my tent" he said, looking at Linhardt.

"Don´t worry Professor, I will do my job tomorrow"

"I´m sure we will win. Persevere and we will prevail"

"That applies to you too, Professor. It looks like you aren´t going to bed anytime soon" observed Dorothea.

"I´m planning to scout the battlefield to make sure that we have the odds in our favor"

"In that case let me accompany you, my Teacher. As the second in command it is my duty to assist you on these matters"

"You are free to accompany me" he nodded at her. He then looked to the rest of his students. "The rest of you, I want all of you sleeping by the time I arrive. Don´t waste your energies. We are going to need all of it tomorrow"

"Said and done" said a yawning Linhardt. "See you tomorrow Professor"

Accompanied by Edelgard, they headed to the future battlefield. The light was running scarce, but there was still enough visibility to see their surroundings.

"There are several natural barriers in the battlefield." He said looking at the streams and small group of forests to the east. "The hill in the center of the area appears to have a platform on it."

"It is a ballista. That place has a height advantage compared to the surrounding areas, but its location in the center means that is going to be a highly disputed area. Do you know where is going to be our starting area?"

"To the north of this stream" he said. "There are two wooden bridges that will allow the crossing of our troops and the waters can serve as a natural barrier, but we have the risk of being attacked from flying units. You and Petra will be our countermeasure to such risk. Seteth hasn´t told me the starting position of the other two teams so we have to take that into account when we make our advance."

"I´m sure that Claude and Dimitri are preparing their strategies at this very moment. I wonder what kind of scheme is preparing Claude"

"We will find out about it tomorrow. Let´s return"

They arrived to the camp, where only members of the Church could be seen.

"Take some rest Edelgard. I will need all your strength tomorrow"

"The same can be said about yours. I hope you can rest as well."

After parting from her he entered his tent and started reviewing a map of the region.

"You heard the little Princess. You should get some rest too"

"I know I´m just making a final review" he said as his attention was caught by something. "We could advance that way" he thought, before entering his bed.

….

**10/22**

"Good morning everyone" Byleth greeted them as they entered his tent.

"So this is how your tent looks like. It is strangely tidy, I wonder how your room looks like" smiled Dorothea.

"Is that the only thing that catches your attention Dorothea? That bed looks very uncomfortable. Sleeping on the ground would be the same to you Professor for all I know" Linhardt said.

"We aren´t here to discuss about the way I handle my private chambers, but about or strategy for the upcoming battle" he said, clearing his throat, making everyone silent. "Our starting area is located to the north. A stream crosses the area with only two wooden bridges on it" he said pointing the area in the map to them. "The one to the east is too far away to have any purpose so we will be focusing on this one. I, Ferdinand and Caspar will spearhead the advance of our troops through the bridge. Edelgard and Petra will use their Pegasi to give us cover as we get to the other side. Bernadetta, Hubert and Dorothea will cover the rearguard. Flayn and Linhardt will stay in the middle to heal their surroundings"

"I get the formation, but where are we heading?" asked Caspar

"There is a hill with a ballista on its top in the middle of the area. The hill will not only give us visibility, but it will give us advantage over the other two teams. I want Bernadetta to take control of the ballista and use it against our enemies. Taking it is a high priority if we want to succeed. Take into account that we won´t be alone, the rest of the students of the academy will take part in the fight. Lead them as you would lead a battalion under normal circumstances"

"Shall we go against a particular group first Professor?" Hubert chuckled.

"No. We will fight them as they come. If we focus on one of them we are giving the other an opportunity to break through our lines. We can´t allow something like that to happen." He then looked to all of them. "The fight will be harsh, but if we stick together and give our best victory will be ours"

"I completely agree with the Professor. We may have had our differences at the beginning of this year, but if we help each other there is nothing that can stop us" Edelgard said.

"Looking at you I can´t wait to fight! Golden Deer or Blue Lions, it doesn´t matter. I will beat them all! My father may come too. He loves watching a good fight when he isn´t taking part into one" said an excited Caspar

"I know that and I hope he doesn´t come. I still remember that time when he tried to train with me" Linhardt said sighing.

"I hope that my father doesn´t come!"

"Don´t worry Bernadetta. Knowing your father he might be discussing some matters with mine" laughed Hubert.

"If you laugh like that it´s scary!"

"Thank you for your encouraging words Profesor, Edelgard. I will give my best" Dorothea smiled.

"I will protect Brigid´s pride!"

"I will give my best too Professor. I will give our team the victory" promised Ferdinand.

"Me too!" Flayn said, making a small jump of excitement.

"I´m counting on all of you. Prepare your equipment and to the victory!" he shouted

They left his tent and headed to the battlefield. Alongside them were the rest of the students that were part of his house.

"How many people attend this monastery? The number of students here is really impressive" asked Sothis inside his head.

"I don´t know, but I am impressed by how many they are too"

The sky was spotless and the weather was nice so they could count on the reliability of the terrain of the battlefield.

"Good morning Professor" greeted him Seteth, who was checking one of the carts. "I see that you are already prepared for battle"

"I am and my students will be in a few moments prepared for battle"

"I am glad to hear that. I hope that Flayn remains safe. Even if it is a mock battle, I don´t want to see her get hurt."

"Don´t worry, she will be protected. I promise"

"I´m counting on you". Seteth´s face was still serious, but it was more relaxed than usual. "Good luck" he said as he left.

…

"The battle is about to begin" commented Edelgard, flying her Pegasus to his side.

"You are right" he said, riding his own.

The cry of an eagle made both of them look to the sky. The eagle was flying in circles above all of them.

"An eagle. It is a good omen about our victory" Edelgard said smiling to him.

"You are right"

The sound of trumpets silenced their voices. Behind them at the top of a crag he could see Seteth and Rhea.

"Students" Seteth said, his voice amplified by magic. "The battle of the Eagle of the Lion is about to begin. Use everything you have learned until now to achieve victory. The winner will be the House that defeats the biggest amount of opponents. A large reward is prepared for the team that wins so I hope that all of you will give your best"

"May the best team win" Rhea said, her voice amplified by magic too. She then casted a fire incantation and released it to the sky. A few seconds later it exploded, marking the beginning of the battle.

"Advance with all our might!" he shouted, leading his Pegasus to the heights.

Edelgard and Petra were leading their mounts to the west where Ingrid was leading a group of Pegasus Knights. To the other side of the bridge they had their first opponents. "The Blue Lions" he thought. Gaining height he nosedived on a group of armored knights that were barricading the bank of the river.

"Fire magic at will" he shouted. The moment he said it a cloud of magic fell on the enemy lines, breaking their frontline. Taking advantage of the confusion Caspar and Ferdinand started to secure the surroundings of the bridge. Fifty meters away from him he saw Edelgard and Petra, which were facing Ingrid´s group.

"Ferdinand, Caspar! Advance forward and secure the ballista!"

"Leave it to us!" shouted Ferdinand.

Byleth charged against one of the Pegasus Knights. After defeating it he searched for his next adversary.

"For Brigid!" he could hear Petra shouting, flying through the enemy lines as if she had been born with her mount.

"So you have come" smiled Ingrid when he noticed him. "I will show you the true strength of a future knight!"

Ingrid´s mount was incredibly fast and Ingrid´s agility with her lance was something to consider, making him change to a defensive position.

"You are very good"

"Tell me that after I dismount you. Prepare yourself!"

He was preparing his sword and shield to face her attack, when a familiar back appeared in front of him.

"Impressive strength, but your lack of awareness will be your undoing" smiled Edelgard, blocking Ingrid´s lance with her shield.

"Edelgard? If I defeat you Dimitri will be proud of me. I won´t hold down!"

"Me neither!"

Lance and axe met. Even if they were using blunt weapons to avoid accidents the impact destabilized both mounts.

"I will prevail!"

Using all the strength she had, Edelgard released a brutal impact on both Ingrid and the Pegasus, making Ingrid fall, but she was quickly picked by a Church Pegasus Knight.

"Defeat. You have bested me, but I´m confident that victory will be ours. Good luck Professor, Edelgard"

"Impressive show of strength Edelgard" he congratulated her.

"This is the result of your guiding, my Teacher I owe…"

Their conversation was interrupted when a giant projectile pierced the sky between them.

"The ballista" he thought. "We must take it down. The west area appears to be free of flying units. You and Petra, follow me"

"Understood!"

They approached the platform at the top of the hill avoiding the projectiles aimed to them.

"We are above them. Charge now!"

As they approached the platform he could see that Ashe was the student operating it. His confident face quickly changed to a surprised one when he saw the three of them charging at him at the same time.

"Counterattack!" he cried, the moment he shouted a storm of magic spells fell on them, but they could neutralize him. Looking at the source of such amount of spells he could see Mercedes and Annette leading a group of magic students.

"I hope I haven´t hurt you Professor" Mercedes said with a smile on her face.

"Even if you are nice with us we won´t be easy on you Professor, right Mercie?"

"Of course Annie, if you want to take the hill you will have to defeat us first"

"Edelgard to my right! Petra to my left!"

"Professor, riders are coming from the forest!" Petra shouted.

"That must be Claude forces" Edelgard said, avoiding a spell aimed at her. "We have to gain height fast"

"Don´t worry Professor" said Ferdinand appearing behind them, accompanied by Caspar. "We will take control of this position for you"

"Understood, Hubert, Dorothea and Bernadetta cover Ferdinand and Caspar´s advance with your range! Petra and Edelgard with me" he shouted as they avoided another round of spells.

As they gained height Byleth could have a complete vision of the fight. The Golden Deer forces were doing a pincer attack against the infantry of the Blue Lions at the base of the hill. He could see that the forces of the Golden Deer were leaded by Leonie and Lorenz.

"The rest of their forces must be in the forest, but we have more urgent matters to solve" Edelgard said looking to the southwest of the hill. "The main forces of the Blue Lions are coming to aid their forces at the top. If we don´t stop them we will lose our main forces and the hill"

"If we take down Dimitri the moral of their group will be destroyed and we will cause confusion between their lines."

"You are right Professor. Taking down the king, the purpose of the rest of the pieces on the board will be lost."

They headed to the position of the main Blue Lions forces. At the head of it he could clearly see the Blue Lions leader mounting a war horse. Charging at him from the skies they approached him as fast as the lightning. He was about to hit him when Dedue appeared in front of him, blocking the attack with all the strength he had. The impact was so brutal that he lost control of his mount, crashing to the ground. Edelgard and Petra clashed against Sylvain and Felix that were accompanying the advance of the rest of Dimitri´s forces.

"Thank you Dedue. Professor, your tactic was interesting, but now you are surrounded by our forces. Even if it is you I won´t back down" He said as he charged at him accompanied by Dedue. Blocking every attack coming from them he knew he was running out of time. With the surprise effect gone it was only a matter of time that the forces of the Blue Lions started to counterattack.

Dedue was about to hit him with a mace when a magic spell impacted against him sending him to the ground.

"What?"

Losing his focus for a second Byleth took the opportunity to punch Dimitri in the stomach.

"Ugh. Good hit Professor, but I´m not done yet" Dimitri said using his horse to reposition.

Dimitri was starting to charge at him with his horse when an explosion of magic happened, sending him to the ground alongside Dedue.

Looking to the source of the spell he could only see a group of bushes.

"Wait. The forest is moving"

The main force of the Golden Deer had used branches and leafs as camouflage to approach them unnoticed and they were charging at them now.

"Protect the position, form a line!" he could hear Dimitri´s voice giving commands, but the field around him was already in complete chaos.

"It appears to be that that was the scheme of Claude" commented Edelgard, arriving to his side. Her hair was completely messy and her face was red by the physical effort, but apart from that she was alright. Alongside her was Petra with a few scratches on her cheek. "A three way battle is unfolding around us, we must take the opportunity to take Dimitri down now that his defenses are low"

They approached Dimitri´s position fighting against Golden Deer and Blue Lions students. Noticing them, Dedue was preparing his shield to protect him again, but he released a potent spell that rendered his defense useless.

"Your Highness. I´m afraid that I have reached my limit. Guide the rest of us to victory"

"Thank you Dedue." Dimitri said, he then looked at Edelgard "So it is time to cross blades. Thinking about our past, I have never imagined such a day would come to pass"

"If the Empire and the Kingdom go to war, we´ll be able to fight as much as we please"

"I am very sorry, but that is not something to joke about. The thought of fighting you is troubling at best"

"In that case I wonder when you´ll be able to stomach facing me in battle. Do you need a few moments? We are in the middle of a battle though"

As Edelgard and Dimitri charged at each other Byleth had to avoid a punch from Raphael, who was still wearing branches around his torso.

"Claude is a clever guy. I would have never thought about doing something like this" he said as he tried to punch his face. Behind him he could hear cries and a familiar voice shouting.

"I have to agree about that, but it is impossible to plan ahead every possible outcome" he said as he released a magic explosion against him. After leaving Raphael out of combat he looked behind him and he was relieved to see that the rest of his forces had joined the fight. For once he was relieved to hear Caspar´s battle cry.

….

"You are strong Edelgard" said Dimitri as they exchanged blows. Dimitri had the reach of his lance, but after fighting countless lance wielders enemies she had grown used to it. "I must admit that I´m envious that you have the guiding of the Professor"

"You have improved a lot too, but regrettably it won´t be enough to stop me"

"I couldn´t expect less from you"

Dimitri charged at her releasing a savage hit. She could block it, but her iron shield shattered as a result. She counterattacked using her axe. Dimitri tried to block the attack with his lance, but the sheer strength of her attack sent him to the ground. With his lance out of reach and on his knees he sighed.

"I have no choice but to admit my defeat. I wish you luck" he said as he was taken away by a Church member.

A familiar cry made her look around. The moment she saw their main forces joining the battle at the base of the hill she couldn´t avoid smiling. "We are winning this fight" she thought. She could see Caspar and Ferdinand breaking through the lines of the Golden Deer and the Blue Lions with the cover of Dorothea and Hubert. Lindhart and Flayn were casting such amount of healing spells that a green cloud was surrounding both of them. She was wondering where Bernadetta was when a projectile from the ballista impacted in front of her, clearing her way to reunite with her Teacher. Looking to the top of the hill she could see a purple haired girl handling the mechanism of the ballista. "One more push and this will be over" she smiled

…

"Good job everyone, just a bit more!" he shouted to his students

"Said and done Professor" shouted Caspar

"We will win this fight!" said Ferdinand avoiding an armored unit and retaliating.

"There is no sight of Claude yet" commented Edelgard that had just approached him. "I suspect that he is still in the forest preparing new schemes against us. The use of vegetation to approach us undetected was a clever idea"

"The forest isn´t a place suited to enter with our entire army. Our Pegasi won´t be of use there anymore."

"In the forest you have to be silent to catch your prey. Silence and not the group of hunters is what matters"

"You are right Petra. Edelgard and Petra accompany me. Stay with your ears and eyes open. Most of their forces are here, but he might have reserve troops waiting for us"

They entered the forest. As they advanced through it the sounds of the fight behind them grew quieter. They could only hear the sound of their breaths and leafs moved by the wind. He was about to enter a forest glade when an arrow almost hit him.

"Teach you should have moved a bit to the left." Claude said, leaving his cover behind a group of bushes. "If you are here it means that the fight outside here is already lost, but if I can take you down the reward might land on our side" he said smiling to him. He charged at him, but the moment he entered the forest glade a potent spell impacted against him, sending him flying against a tree.

"I´m sorry Professor, but even if it is you I must win" Lysithea said.

She was charging another spell when Petra appeared from the shadows knocking her down to the ground. Taking advantage from the situation he got up, applying some magic on his body to heal the injuries from the impact. He noticed a silver light coming from his left and avoided by the skin of his teeth and axe attack aimed to his head.

"You are making me work Professor" Hilda said, smiling to him. "Why can you stay unconscious for a moment? Be easy with me, I´m a frail lady"

The strength of her blows was telling otherwise. Taking advantage of the situation Claude was able to neutralize Petra and was preparing to attack him when Edelgard appeared in front of him, blocking the arrow with her axe. Letting her taking care of Claude he focused on defeating Hilda.

…

"I didn´t expect to see you around here Princess. You seem to be exhausted, why don´t you take it easy and surrender? I promise to be nice with you"

"That would be a foolish decision. The only possible outcome must be our victory over you"

"I wouldn´t worry about that right now. There´s a rat right by your Imperial feet"

"Ah!" losing focus for a moment Claude tried to attack her with his sword, but hopefully she was able to block it with her axe. "How dare you make a fool of me. You will not rile me with such childish tactics"

"I don´t think so. The sheer terror in your eyes was something else entirely. My mistake. Anyway, it was only a joke. Take it easy"

"You really hope to unsettle me with childish jokes? It won´t work. Prepare to face your defeat!"

Claude had the agility, but he lacked the resistance to face her for too long. After a few minutes of fight his reaction to her attacks was slower and he couldn't avoid an attack aimed to his stomach, cutting his breath.

"You´ve got me there, Imperial Princess. Victory is yours"

"You fought well too"

"No need to hit the face Professor. I get it, I surrender." She could hear Hilda´s voice behind her.

"I still have much to learn" Lysithea admitted, getting up. She then released a fire spell to the sky. A few moments later a group of Pegasus Knights arrived helping the three of them to leave the area.

"Congratulations Teach, Edelgard. Let´s celebrate this little battle back in the monastery" Claude said as he was taken by one of the knights.

"Congratulations Edelgard" her Teacher said, approaching him. Applying his healing magic he healed her and Petra. "We must reunite with the others"

"You are right. Petra if you want to, I can carry you"

"Don´t worry Edelgard, the Professor´s magic was enough to me"

The three of them left the cover of the forest and arrived to the area to the south of the hill, where she found the rest of her classmates. They appeared to be exhausted, but their faces were filled with pride.

"Good job everyone! I´m proud of all of you" her Teacher congratulated all of them.

"My Teacher we still need to hear the announcement from Seteth, but I´m certain that we have prevailed" she smiled to him.

"The battle of the Eagle and the Lion has come to an end" the magic amplified voice of Seteth said. "Looking at the results of all the teams and the display of strategy the winners of this year are the Black Eagles!" The moment Seteth said the results an explosion of happiness unfolded around her. Surrendering herself to the happiness around her she was about to join the celebrations when she felt familiar arms surrounding her.

"You have done a great job Edelgard. I´m especially proud of you" he whispered to her ear as he hugged her. Feeling her heart fighting to leave her body she embraced him too.

"You too my Teacher, I will never forget this moment and it is all thanks to you"

"Lady Edelgard?!"

"Oh my, this is so cute!" she could hear Dorothea´s singing voice.

"That´s favoritism Professor" Linhardt complained.

"Let´s make a big group hug!" Caspar shouted embracing the two of them.

"Ok, ok, but don´t use brute force. I´m already tired" Linhardt said yawning.

"I must agree with Caspar. It is a proof that our bonds are deeper than ever before" said Ferdinand

"Is this another custom from Fódlan?" Petra asked.

"Let me join too!" said Flayn with her usual smiling face.

"Don´t leave me behind" cried Bernadetta.

All of them made a group hug. Hubert´s hands were dangerously close to Byleth´s neck, but a look from her was enough to stop him. She was at first overwhelmed by the proximity of all of her classmates, but looking at all of their smiling faces she couldn´t avoid smiling too. Forgetting all her worries she surrendered to the blooming feeling of happiness exploding inside her heart.

"I wish this could last forever" she thought.


	34. Revelations

"You have done a great job; feel free to rest for now" He said as they arrived to the camp of the church.

"Congratulations Professor for your victory" Seteth greeted him as Byleth and the rest of his students landed in front of him, escorted by the Pegasus Knights of the Church. "An impressive battle I must admit. You did well too, Flayn"

"Thank you brother! Thanks to the Professor I was able to give my best"

"When you have time Rhea wants to speak with you"

"I will be going in a moment" he promised as Seteth and Flayn left together.

"A battle to remember, congratulations, Edelgard, Professor" Dimitri said approaching them accompanied by Claude.

"A total defeat, I don´t want to face both of you anytime soon" Claude admitted.

"It was a difficult battle, but I must admit that if we were to battle again I don´t know what the outcome could have been. What do you think Professor?"

"We crushed them"

"I´m surprised to hear such a comment from you Professor" Edelgard said, although she was smiling as she heard that.

"That´s too harsh Teach" Claude laughed. "And here I was thinking my little tricks would give us the upper hand in the battle"

"Thank you for your sincerity Professor. I will continue to practice, although I hope that the day when I have to put into practice what I have learnt never comes"

"You are right Dimitri. The battle of the Eagle and the Lion takes its name from a battle that took place in this very place centuries ago, but that doesn´t mean that history must repeat again"

"If we get along there is no need to resort to such methods. Don´t you think Teach? I have an idea. Let´s make a little celebration when we return to the monastery. We can use that opportunity to strengthen our bonds, don´t you think? Although it will just be eating at the canteen"

"The fruits of the victory" he said smiling.

"You are unusually expressive today my Teacher" Edelgard said smiling to him. "If you smile to me like that I´m tempted to cut loose from my usual self. I´m looking forward it"

"After a great battle there is nothing better than a great dinner!" Caspar shouted.

"I agree with Caspar. We must celebrate the result of our efforts. A cup of tea will do me a great favor" Ferdinand said.

"This battle was decided by Lady Edelgard´s capabilities, although I must admit that you were important as well Professor"

"Hubie, you must be really happy if you are saying something like that, but I agree with you"

"In Brigid we celebrate after a great battle with a great meal. Hearing that in Fódlan is the same makes me happy"

"After doing so much healing today I hope you will grant me some rest Professor, but being you I don´t expect much" Linhardt sighed.

"You are free to rest as much as you want, you have earned it"

"Really? You caught me there Professor, but thank you. Although I would like to rest more often" said a relieved Linhardt.

"I did my best too Professor" said Bernadetta. "That ballista was heavy, but I did my best to use it"

"I´m proud of you too Bernadetta"

"It cannot be helped" said a bit blushed Bernadetta.

"So there you are!" shouted an unfamiliar voice.

A man wearing a heavy armor was approaching them.

"Father!" said Caspar.

"Seeing all your exhausted faces I´m sure you had fun down there, but that was just a game compared to the real world." He then looked to Byleth "You must be the Professor who is teaching all of them. They still need a lot of learn, but I thank you for leading them"

"Count Bergliez, I´m pleased to see you here" said Edelgard. The moment he realized Edelgard´s identity the Count kneeled before her. "I wish to have some words with you"

"I have no problem for that"

"I will see all of you later. I´m looking forward to our celebration in the monastery" she said, as she left accompanied by the Count.

"Your dad is scarier as ever, Caspar. At least he didn´t recognize me. I´m sure that he would have made me train with him again." Lindhardt said.

"That´s because you are too lazy Linhardt." He said, although he noticed that Caspar´s eyes were looking at Petra as if he felt sorry about something.

"Rest as much as you want, but take into account that we will leave shortly. I will be leaving" he said as he headed to the archbishop´s tent.

The tent of the archbishop was guarded by church soldiers, but they quickly let him pass when they noticed him. The interior of the tent was pleasantly warmth. The archbishop was talking with Catherine when she noticed he had entered.

"Your performance was really impressive Byleth. You have inherited a lot of talent from your father."

"My students did their best to achieve victory"

"I´m sure they did, your leading capabilities are something to remark" Catherine said. "With your permission Lady Rhea, I will be preparing the troops for our return"

"Thank you Catherine. Come closer Professor there is no need to be so shy"

Rhea looked at him with a nice smile as he approached her.

"You have achieved a lot during these months. You have not only assumed your role as a Professor perfectly, but you have also allowed your students to reach higher heights. Such actions must be rewarded. I beg you to take this" she said, offering him a peculiar lance.

"It is a blessed lance. This lance is imbued with the protection of the Goddess herself. It can be used effectively against the monsters that dwell in this world, although I hope you do not have to resort to using it"

Taking a closer look to the lance, Byleth could see that it had strange runes written on it. "It must be an ancient weapon" he thought as he touched it.

"I feel honored by this gift; I will make a good use of it"

"I couldn´t expect less from you Professor. Consider it a reward for your efforts for all these months. We will be shortly departing. I hope that our return doesn´t exhaust your dear students"

"I will go to tell them"

He left the archbishop´s tent behind him, still feeling her eyes looking at him.

…

**10/24 Wyvern moon**

As they passed through a small forest the monastery appeared in front of them in the distance.

"Time passes really quickly when you are with the right company, don´t you think Professor?" asked Dorothea.

"You are right" he had to admit. After their victory in Gronder Field, the moral of his students was extremely high. They didn´t have too much time to celebrate at Gronder, but looking at them, he was sure that a big celebration was about to happen. They had been escorted all their way to the border with the Alliance territories by Imperial troops. The presence of so many soldiers made him remember his days as a former mercenary, fighting alongside the soldiers of each noble house. Watching and hearing the way the soldiers and generals addressed Edelgard made him realized the respect they had for her.

"She is the Imperial Princess, after all" Sothis commented inside his head. "Are you going to start calling her your Highness, Lady Edelgard or something like that?"

"To me is just Edelgard"

"You really treat them all the same and I think that that is very positive. Are you going to celebrate the victory with your students?"

"Of course" he said, smiling.

"Your smile is wider than before. Bit a bit you are changing for the better" she smiled sitting at her stone throne.

"Professor your smile is getting sweeter as time passes. You really have changed" Dorothea said.

"Even a battle hardened warrior can indulge himself from time to time. I´m glad to see that side of yours more often" Edelgard said, smiling to him.

"We are just getting started. This is going to be the first of many celebrations after a good fight. I´m looking forward to our next battles" Ferdinand said.

"I can´t agree more with that. I´m feeling like fighting again!"

"Don´t do that Caspar, you may be expelled if you do something like that without a reason"

"Is there a rule like that?!"

"Can you read?" Linhardt sighed.

"The last one to arrive will have to clean everything after the celebration ends" he said, riding his horse faster.

"You are joking, right Professor? I was already making plans for the after-party"

"Dorothea, I doubt he is. We should just follow him" Linhardt sighed.

When he looked behind him he could see how his students were trying to chase him. He couldn´t avoid smiling as he leaded them forwards the monastery.

…..

**10/24 (night)**

The canteen was filled with students from the different houses. Black Eagles, Blue Lions or Golden Deer, it didn´t matter. All of them appeared to be happy and were chatting with each other.

He was sitting with the rest of the Professors and members of the Church in a different table, but he could clearly see all his students from there. From time he could see Edelgard looking at him and couldn´t avoid feeling that strange sensation in his chest every time their eyes met.

"I must congratulate you for your hard earned victory, Byleth" said Hanneman, interrupting his thoughts. "I´m sure my students were a hard nut to crack"

"Don´t be so high about yourself, Hanneman. My students were clearly in an advantageous situation. Claude is a very clever boy; he really has a good grasping of strategy. Time passes so fast. With this event already finished there is nothing to do until the White Heron Cup"

"The White Heron Cup?"

"It is a dancing competition between three students of the different houses. It is a custom that has been in the monastery since it started to receive students from all around Fódlan."

"I didn´t know about that. Are you feeling better Manuela?" he asked.

"You should learn from Byleth, Hanneman. He surely is a gentleman. I´m feeling better, but when it starts to rain I still feel some pain in the area where I was stabbed. Hopefully, today is not one of those days"

"I hope you recover completely soon"

"I know some things that could boost my recuperation" she said teasingly winking an eye to him, making Hanneman cough what he was drinking.

"Manuela, that kind of comment was highly inconvenient"

"I´m just joking. Besides, Byleth appears to be unaffected by my charm"

"There is no possibility of someone falling for you since you are a mess and…ugh!" Hanneman stopped what he was saying and started caressing one of his legs as if he had been hit by someone under the table.

"Remember that you are speaking to a Lady, Hanneman." Manuela said, regaining her composure.

"Doing something like this is improper of a lad…"

"Hanneman, I don´t know what you are talking about. Let me enjoy my conversation with Byleth"

"I heard from Catherine that it was an impressive battle" said Shamir, which was sitting two more sits to his right. "It seems that you have leadership skills"

"Jeralt will be proud of you when he returns" said Alois, which was sitting in front of him. "I wish I could have watched it, but someone has to stay to protect the monastery in the absence of Lady Rhea and Seteth. By the way Professor, I´ve been taking care of the little student you have left behind. She is alright, but I think that she doesn´t like me that much"

"That must be because you are telling bad jokes"

"They are not that bad Shamir. I think about them and write them down. I have this small pocket book to make sure that I remember them perfectly"

"The fact that you prepare the jokes you tell worries me more about what you consider funny" Shamir sighed.

"Thank you for your help Alois. I will be taking care of her since the begin of our lessons next month"

"It makes me happy to help you Byleth. If you ever need someone you can just call me"

"Professor, do you want to give a try to this game?" asked Sylvain, approaching the Professor´s table. "It is a board game. Most students have played it once or twice. Would you like to give it a try?"

Looking at the board game Sylvain was carrying in his arms he realized it was the same board game he had been playing with Edelgard when he was ill.

"I will give it a try"

"How cute coming from you Byleth" Manuela smiled. "When you are side to side with the rest of the students you look like one of them, not like this old man over here"

"Age brings wisdom, but I guess that you are unaffected by it."

Leaving behind the discussion of his colleagues he accompanied Sylvain to the main table with the rest of the students.

"Let´s play a few matches. I won´t be easy on you" Sylvain said, sitting in front of him.

Sylvain was true to his word. The first game was a slaughter of Byleth´s pieces. But the following ones Byleth started to counterattack Sylvain´s strategy, although Sylvain was more experienced than him. He was about to move one of the pieces when he felt a familiar scent coming from behind him.

"You are abusing the lack of experience of the Professor. After playing with me you haven´t been using, it right?" Edelgard asked sitting next to him.

"I´m afraid not"

"There is no need to apologize. I will help you"

"That´s not fair at all Edelgard" Sylvain complained.

"Have you just lost your confidence all of a sudden Sylvain?"

"I won´t be easy on you" he said, a confident look in his eyes.

With the balances of power stabilized Byleth started to retake positions more easily. At first Edelgard´s advised him more often, but as he got used to the flow of the game again, the decisions he made by his own increased until he won a match by himself against Sylvain.

"You learn fast Professor. I accept my defeat"

"Edelgard taught my well" he said gently smiling to her. "I´m sorry that at first I forgot some of the rules and strategies you told me"

"Don´t worry my Teacher. I´m glad I could lend a hand"

"Since the Professor has gained experience how about a fight between teams?" Sylvain said, putting on the table an even bigger board game. "With a board of this size the three houses could play at the same time"

"The rematch of the battle of the Eagle and the Lion. I like the idea" Claude laughed as he took a seat.

"This time victory will be ours, Professor" Dimitri assured him as the rest of the students of the different Houses started to take their seats.

"Professor, we need to defend our title. We won´t lose"

They had several matches, but in the end the Black Eagles won, closely followed by the Golden Deer.

"That last movement was terrible Dimitri" Felix said. "You are too easy to read"

"I will consider that for the upcoming battles"

"These board games really make you think." Claude laughed. "You could say that we ended the day celebrating our battle with another battle" he then yawned. "I´m getting a bit tired. I think I will be leaving. Someone should certainly already leave" he said looking at the table of the Professors.

Byleth looked at it and quickly realized what he meant.

Manuela was evidently drunk, trying to get up, but he was stopped by Hanneman that by the look of his face was used to face such situations. Shamir and Catherine were playing a dangerous dagger game on the table and they were cheered by Flayn, whose brother was desperately trying to dissuade her from watching anymore and Alois had already fallen asleep.

"I am pleased to see that everyone has enjoyed this evening as much as I do. However, it is time to rest" Rhea said with a firm voice that reached the bottom of the room. "Classes will reassume with the arriving of the next month, until then you are free to rest"

"You have already heard the archbishop. It is time to rest" Seteth said with his usual serious face. "Flayn we should be going to sleep too"

"You are so boring brother. I just want to stay a bit longer."

"Ugh. Thirty minutes, no more" he said as he left the room.

One by one the rest of the students started to leave the canteen. Manuela was carried away by Catherine and Shamir and Hanneman left with Alois after he had woke him up. However, the Black Eagles students remained there.

"It has finally ended" Bernadetta said in a relieved tone. "Eating with so many people around me was really distressing"

"Put your chin high, Bernadetta. It was a chance for you to grow"

"But everyone was acting so friendly it was overwhelming"

"Isn´t a bit too early yet?" Dorothea complained. "I get the feeling that there were already couples forming. With this full moon I just want to disappear with someone"

"I was planning to make some tea to relax a bit. Do you want to share a cup with me Dorothea?"

"I´m sorry, but I already have plans"

"But you just…" Ferdinand sighed.

"And when one of the Golden Deer students was in front of me I shouted and… Are you listening Linhardt?"

"And you defeated it. Battling is just too simple. You just hit someone until you win. Now if you excuse me my bed is waiting for me"

"Looking to each one of us you would think it is a miracle that we can work as a team." Edelgard admitted, standing next to him. "I´ve had always thought that it was my duty to guide all of them into their path, but you have proved me that relying on others can help us to reach more heights. Thanks to you I´ve gotten to experience what it´s like to fight alongside everyone and I´ve even realized that fighting under your command makes me happy. Someday I will be the future emperor of the Empire, but even knowing who I was, you have treated me with no distinction with the others. Even if, as an emperor, I have to assume the burdens of my position I won´t forget what you have done for me here. I may be heir to the Imperial throne, but first and foremost I´m your student. That won´t change even when I turn into the next emperor of the Adrestian Empire."

Hearing her words made him feel an intense happiness inside him.

"I will remember this time too and in my eyes you will always be Edelgard" he said as he rubbed her hair.

"It cannot be helped" she sighed, although she was smiling too.

"Edelgard is right Professor. You have treated all of us the same despite our backgrounds or families" Linhardt said.

"It´s because of you that I´ve had the courage to leave my room for a bit each day, even if you forced me to leave sometimes" Bernadetta said, shyly smiling to him.

"Taking care of everyone is something really remarkable. If more people were like you this world would be a better place to live" assured him Ferdinand.

"In Brigid those who fight alongside each other are bounded. After all these battles you aren´t just our Professor, you are our friend"

"I agree with Petra, Professor. The fact that everyone here could work as a team is thanks to you. Besides, helping each other is what friends do, right?" Dorothea said with a smile in her face.

"Not only that, but you are a fearsome warrior. The punch you gave me in our first lesson taught me a lot" said Caspar.

"I guess that your talent as a teacher is something to take into account. I thank you for your guiding"

"That is so sweet coming from you Hubie"

"I cannot thank you enough for the fact that even I had the opportunity to experience your guiding. And you saved me. Please allow me to express my gratitude once more, Professor" said Flayn with a smile on her face.

An intense feeling of gratitude was starting to blossom inside him. Looking at all of them he was feeling a bit overwhelmed with the different emotions he was experiencing at the same time; pride, happiness and even a bit of sadness as he knew his everyday life would eventually come to an end.

"I´m happy to have all of you as my students. I will never forget this day" he promised them.

…

One by one they started to leave the canteen and headed to their respective dormitories. Byleth was heading to his dormitory when he noticed that Edelgard was standing next to the fishing pond.

"Aren´t you going to sleep Edelgard?"

"I just wanted to enjoy the gentle breeze around here"

"Ah, I see, good night then"

"My Teacher, I wish to speak a private matter with you. Something I´ve wanted to tell you for a while, but I wasn´t able to do"

"I´m here to listen to you"

"I wish to speak in a more isolated place. Could we go to the field of flowers you showed me for my birthday?"

Intrigued by her words he didn´t have a particular reason to refuse.

"I don´t have any problem about that. Let me search for a mount"

They headed to the Pegasus stables together. The world around them was completely silent. Most of the Pegasi had been used by the members of the Church that had just arrived to the monastery so most of them appeared to be exhausted, except one of them.

"This one seems fit enough to fly." He observed. "Edelgard, you will hold the reins. I will show you the way. With the moonlight it will be easy to spot"

Helping Edelgard to climb the Pegasus he quickly jumped behind her, embracing her from behind they left the ground under them and headed to the night sky.

"Are you right Edelgard, your arms appear to be stiff"

"It´s just that I´m tired, my Teacher, but don´t worry I have enough strength to reach our objective." Her voice was firm, but he realized her ears were a bit red.

The monastery grew smaller as they flew under the moonlight. After a while Byleth spotted the field of flowers that was blooming once again as a reaction to the moonlight.

"Over there Edelgard"

As she heard his command the Pegasus started to fly lower and lower until the field under them was perfectly visible. After a short while the Pegasus landed in the middle of the field of flowers.

"A nice flight Edelgard" He said as he landed and offered his hand to help her.

"You have taught me well" she said, accepting his hand. "Now that we are completely alone I can talk freely with you. Do you remember what I told you the night you enteedr my room? About my past? None of my siblings had a chance to lead the life they deserved; an ordinary life."

"I remember"

"My siblings and I were imprisoned underground, beneath the palace. The objective was to endow our bodies with the power of a Major Crest. As you know I posses the Crest of Seiros, inherited through the Hresvelg bloodline, but it was a minor Crest, not comparable to the power of a major Crest and most of my siblings were born crestless. In order to create the perfect ruler of Fódlan they violated our bodies by cutting open our very flesh. I was the only one to survive the experimentation suffered by my body and now here I stand in front of you, the fruit of such abomination: Edelgard von Hresvelg. The life of my family wasn´t the only destroyed by this process. Nameless innocents died as well, without ever knowing why they were sacrificed. That´s the dark truth that hides in the shadows of the current Empire"

Her words had a major impact inside him. He could feel ire slowly extending through his body.

"That is unforgivable. Who is to blame?"

"The prime minister and his gaggle of nobles. My father wanted to strengthen his position of power after witnessing the indulgence and the everlasting corruption that existed in the circles of nobles of the Empire. However, the insurrection of the Seven happened and rendered my father powerless. He could do nothing to save us, even if he wanted to."

"The prime minister…" The image of Ferdinand´s face came to his mind. He couldn't believe that such a pure boy could have a father capable of such atrocities.

"I know that it sounds difficult to believe, but when you see my true strength you will realize I speak the truth. I will show to you the thing I have kept hidden all this time…my second Crest" she said as she extended the palm of her hand.

A familiar crest materialized in front of him.

"A crest long ago forgotten that it was thought to be lost" he recalled Hanneman´s explanation as he looked what he was seeing in front of him. "It cannot be" he said, although his eyes weren´t lying to him.

"It is the same as yours…the Crest of Flames. When it first manifested for me, I swore a silent oath. For the sake of my family and for all the poor souls whose lives were traded for my existence… For their sake I sake I will build a world where such meaningless sacrifice never happens again"

Activating his crest he compared the two of them. They were identical. As they did the events of the last months started to come to his mind.

The dreams of the war, Zanado, the aching of his heart as he was Nemesis, his boiling blood as he was Seiros, the deep scars of his chest. Hanneman´s voice came again to his mind.

"Does it mean that I´m a descendant of Nemesis?"

"That is highly unlikely. The information about the War of the Heroes is really scarce, but there aren´t any reports that talk about the descendants of Nemesis. A crest of such power, it is impossible that was ignored for too long until it manifested again"

He wasn´t a descendant from Nemesis, yet he was able to wield a crestless Sword of the Creator. Does it mean that…?

"I may be the result of experimentation too" he said taking off his shirt.

"My Teacher, what are…" Edelgard was a bit blushed, but her face changed when she saw the deep scars around his chest.

"My Teacher, what happened to you?" she said gently touching his chest, making his heart ache. "I bear the same scars than you, although I´m afraid I cannot show them to you"

"Ah, don´t worry. I believe your words"

"Do you remember anything about your past?"

"My first memories are with my father travelling around the world. I´ve always had this marks in my body"

"Then it must have happened in your early life. I´ve always felt a strange connection with you, my Teacher. It relieves me to know that there is another person in the world that has the same Crest as I do, but it also saddens me that you have probably suffered a similar experimentation. I swear to you that I will fight for a world where there is no place to such unnecessary suffering. Thank you for trusting me with your inner thoughts. I really appreciate it"

"Thank you for telling me this Edelgard. I sincerely hope that your dreams come true" he said as he embraced her.

"My Teacher…"

"Yes Edelgard?"

"I really appreciate it, but you are still shirtless…I don´t want you to catch a cold"

"I´m sorry"

When he released her from his embrace her face was crimson red.

"We should be heading to the monastery again before they notice the missing Pegasus" she said as she picked one of the flowers from the field.

"You are right"

They climbed the Pegasus again and a short while later they were in the air again. They were in complete silence, each one lost in their own thoughts.

"Why do we have the same Crest? For what purpose I have this Crest? What will happen to me in the future as the bearer of this Crest?" there were a lot of unanswered question coming to his mind, but he didn´t have the answers to resolve them. "There are so many things I ignore" he thought.

The giant shadow of the monastery grew bigger as they approached its surroundings. After a moment they landed in front of the stables. They were lucky and there was none in the surroundings.

"Thank you for coming with me, I was trying to find an occasion to talk with you alone, but I wasn´t successful until now"

"That was what you were trying to tell me when we were at the pool" he said, recalling the events of that night.

"There is no need to remember something like that in a moment like this" she said, her cheeks red "But I´m glad I was able to tell you. Keep it a secret between us."

"I promise you I will tell no one"

"I will do the same about yours" she said nodding at him.

"It´s getting late" he said, looking to the moon. "You should get some rest Edelgard and thank you for trusting me"

"You as well, the battle of the Eagle and the Lion, the journey from Gronder and the subsequent celebration must have exhausted you too. Good night Byleth"

As she left him alone, he stayed silent for a while. There were so many things surrounded in mystery, but he swore to himself he would find the truth about it. "This is not a personal matter anymore. I´m not the only person affected by this" he thought. He promised himself to unveil the truth that was waiting for him beyond the shadows as he returned to his room, the moon the only witness of his silent oath.


	35. Seeking the sun

**10/27 Wyvern moon**

"Thank you for sharing a cup of tea with me Edie"

"I have no problem to spend time with you, Dorothea. Besides, until the beginning of next month we won´t be having any classes"

She was drinking a cup of tea with Dorothea in the gardens of the monastery. A gentle breeze was blowing and there was no sign of clouds in the sky, but she knew that in a few weeks the real cold would enter the monastery. Most of the students were enjoying their hard earned free time and she really couldn´t blame them for that.

"The Professor has been very nice with us, letting us rest. He is nicer than I expected, but I can´t complain about it"

"We were the winners of the Battle of the Eagle and the Lion. He knows we have earned it"

A few days had already passed since she revealed to him the secret of her second crest, the Crest of flames, and since then she couldn´t avoid thinking about him and the scars in his chest. "They are similar to mine, but I´ve never heard them talking about a second weapon and the fact that they want me to gather information about him makes me think that it is unlikely they are the perpetrators of those old wounds. Who had done that to you, my Teacher?"

"Edie, are you listening?"

She was a bit startled by the voice that interrupted her thoughts until she realized it was Dorothea.

"Forgive me, Dorothea, I was just lost in thought" She used to pay attention but the recent events had been draining her attention. "And from next month I will have to be wary of Monica again" she thought.

"Don´t worry about that Edie" Dorothea said as she sipped a bit of her tea. She then paused for a moment, as if she was thinking carefully what she was about to say. "You must be really busy lately. Tell me, since when are the Professor and you dating?"

She was sipping her own cup of tea as she heard Dorothea´s question. The moment she heard it she coughed.

"W-What are you saying Dorothea?" she asked, feeling her cheeks starting to get hot.

"I saw both of you leaving the monastery at night, riding the same Pegasus. You spent more than an hour alone out there with the Professor Edie, don´t play the innocent with me" she said with a teasing smile.

"Were you spying us?"

"I had my own plans, but they didn´t materialize. Don´t make me remember that" she sighed. "I was about to return to my room when I saw you and the Professor leaving together. I had so much curiosity that I decided to wait and it was worth it. However, both of you are too cold. Why didn´t give the Professor a goodnight kiss, Edie?"

"Y-You are misunderstanding things Dorothea" she said as she felt her heart fighting to leave her chest. "We weren´t doing anything…inappropriate. You are just having a misunderstanding. I´ve just wanted to visit a place I´ve never been before alone and asked for his help"

"So boring Edie" Dorothea said sighing. "And here I thought I was watching a blossoming love story. How cruel from you Edie to make feel excited about it"

"I told you that you were just misunderstanding things" she said, feeling a bit relieved.

"I was too optimistic. Then you just like him?"

"What?!" she said, her composure completely lost.

"If you don´t do anything you may eventually lose him Edie"

"I only see him as…"

"As a Professor? Not so sure about it. I´ve been with you for months Edie and I´ve seen how you act around him. I don´t understand what it´s wrong about that"

"I…" she was too embarrassed to say anything. Had she turned into someone so easy to read?

"Tell me simply yes or no. Would you be happy if he were with someone else?"

She remained silent for a moment, hearing her heartbeats in her ears. She then looked at her. Dorothea was waiting for her response, her face serious.

"No" she said, her voice almost a whisper.

"Thank you for your sincerity Edie." Dorothea said smiling to her. "The fact that you can fall for someone makes me happy. I almost want to sing"

"Don´t talk aloud, please!" It was enough she had to confess her inner feelings to her, she didn´t want the rest of the monastery to find about them.

"Don´t worry Edie, I won´t tell anyone. We are friends after all" Dorothea said smiling. "Then I have to prepare a strategy to make things work."

"You don´t really have to do anything" she said, looking to her surroundings.

"Why not? Are you just going to do nothing?"

"I may eventually have to marry for political reasons. If that brings a better future for Fódlan so be it" It wasn´t the future she wished for, but she knew from the bottom of her heart that that would be the most probable outcome of her future. She also knew that with people like Kronya and Solon around her she couldn´t indulge herself in the blossoming feelings she was experiencing, no matter how regretful it may be.

"The noble talk again." Dorothea sighed. "The nobles already have their military skirmishes. Why do they have to use everything for their benefit? At least you are willing to afford to sacrifice your own happiness for a greater good, but I can´t avoid feeling a bitter taste in my mouth when I hear those words coming from you"

"It is my duty as the future ruler of the Empire, but I promise you I will change this world for the better"

"Hearing the confidence of your words makes me happy. But don´t sacrifice everything for the sake of others. I wouldn´t want to see a beautiful flower like you dry so early"

"Thank you for your gentle words Dorothea, I really appreciate them" she said to her with a gentle smile.

"Besides, it is still too early to give up. I will fight for your blossoming love story Edie. I will do my best!"

"You don´t really need to do anything Dorothea. And please, be quiet. They are going to hear us" she said as she blushed again.

….

"Lady Rhea wants to speak with you"

"I will go, thanks for telling me Cyril"

"By the way…"

"Yes?"

"Congratulations for your victory. I heard it was a great battle"

"Thank you Cyril" he was tempted to rub his hair as he said so, but he knew it would unadvisable to do something like that with him.

Byleth followed the little boy to the audience room. A few days had already passed since Edelgard´s revelation of her second crest, but he couldn´t stop thinking about it.

"There are a lots of things we don´t understand about this world." commented Sothis inside his head.

"You are right"

He found Rhea waiting for him in the audience room. The moment their eyes met she gently smiled to him.

"Good morning Byleth, I am pleased to see you well. I am sorry to summon you, but there are some important matters that need to be settled."

"I don´t have any problem. What can I do to help you?"

"I think that it is more appropriate to hear the information from the source itself. Please, come over here" she ordered, looking at someone behind him.

When Byleth turned around, he was surprised to see Ignatz, Raphael, Alois, Shamir, Ingrid, Claude and his own father approaching. When their eyes met he smiled to him. It had been a while since the last time they had seen each other.

"So many people! Why do you have to resolve everyone´s problems? Is the almighty Church short of troops?" complained Sothis.

"I´ve received a letter from my father" said the shy Ignatz "There have been reports of beasts attacking merchants in the alliance territory, mainly in the territories of Gloucester. The attacks have occurred with more frequency now and I want to intervene before the situation gets any worse"

"I heard about that too. It seems that we couldn´t wipe them out completely the last time I was sent to deal with them" his father said.

"Ignatz was about to leave by its own, but I convinced him to ask for your help Professor. If you were able to defeat me so easily I´m sure you won´t have any problems with a bunch of monsters" laughed Raphael.

"We have also received reports of Pirates approaching Derdriu" explained to him Shamir, in her usual serious tone. "We have to prevent them from attacking the city. We have to leave as soon as possible if we want to arrive to the city before the attack"

"Unfortunately, the territories of the Alliance are short of troops so they have requested the help of the Church" continued Alois.

"We suffer attacks from pirates from time to time, but this one appears to be quite bit so I requested for some help" said Claude "If you don´t mind let the Golden Deer students accompany you this time. It´s a problem that it's affecting our own country, after all"

"I don´t mind"

"Professor" said Ingrid, clearing her throat. "I´ve received a letter from my father talking about my new marriage proposal, but when Dorothea took it from my hands she vehemently opposed to any engagement with him. She says that his fortune is stained by blood and that we would find the truth about it if we go to Ailell. Since he is a noble from the Alliance I beg you to accompany me."

"I will help you with anything I can do"

"Since you are taking care of three different tasks I will be accompanying you" said Jeralt "I´ve just returned here, but I don´t mind lending a hand. Is that ok for you Rhea?"

"I have already stolen too much time from both of you. Besides, together and with the Goddess´s protection I am sure that these events will be promptly resolved. Alois and Shamir will be accompanying you too"

"Like the old days Jeralt" laughed Alois.

"I´m looking forward to working with you, Byleth, Jeralt" said Shamir.

"Me too"

"I will tell the rest of the Golden Deer about it Teach. We should leave as soon as possible or our problems are just going to get worse"

"We will leave tomorrow at dawn"

"Since we are trying to resolve three different tasks we should establish an order. The merchant routes are on our way to the Alliance capital and we could use our return to resolve the problem with that noble. Is that ok for you, young girl?"Jeralt asked to Ingrid.

"There is nothing settled about my marriage so I can wait"

"Very well. Then our first problem to deal with will be the merchants, after that the pirates and finally that little noble. We don´t have time to waste so make sure that everyone is ready tomorrow. We won´t be waiting for anyone"

"Said and done Jeralt" smiled Claude as he left.

"Thank you Professor" said Ignatz with a shy smile.

"I told you Ignatz. I was sure the Professor would lend a hand. It is going to be our first time out there together. I will give my best shot" said Raphael, patting his back, as him and Ignatz followed Claude.

"I must thank you Professor. I will go to prepare my things too"

"Take care Ingrid"

"We will be doing the same."

"It´s a dream come true! I will show what I can…"

"Alois, less talking and more preparing" Shamir said as he carried him out of the audience room.

"I will pray for the best of outcomes. May the Goddess be with all of you"

"Thank you Rhea. Byleth, come with me to my room. We have to prepare our travel plan"

"Of course father"

They left behind the audience room and headed to the room of his father. His father was still wearing his battle armor, but didn´t appear to be tired by it.

"I´ve just arrived and I´m leaving again. I was about to meet you, but that little boy said that Rhea requested my presence"

"Cyril. He told me to meet her too"

"He is always serious, but he is a good boy. At least we are together again. I heard that you won the Battle of the Eagle and the Lion. It was a pity that I wasn´t there, but I´m proud that you did it" he said as he rubbed his hair.

"My students gave their best"

"I´m sure about that. It´s the main event of the academic year after all. They are all very nice. The real problem is that their parents aren´t that nice" he said as he sighed. "We killed a few of those beasts a few months ago, but it seems that the mastermind behind the attacks is acting again. And we can´t forget about the pirates approaching the capital of the Leicester Alliance. That country has always been unstable, but to this level… The north and the east are turning into a mess. We had a rebellion in the west. If we were working as mercenaries again we would have plenty of work across all of Fódlan"

"We will have to be more careful from now on. I will have to tell my students about this change of plans. I promised to give them some rest, but I hope they can understand"

"They will. You are his Professor after all" he laughed as he opened the door to his room. "I need to search some maps of the region. There aren´t many natural obstacles on our way, but we have to make sure to avoid wasting our time"

"Father, I wanted to ask you something"

"Go ahead son, no need to be so formal. You can ask my anything" he said, as he kept searching the maps.

"How do you feel when you fall in love with someone?"

Hearing his words, his father suddenly stopped and slowly got up again.

"Of all possible things I didn´t expect to hear that from you"

"I´m sorry"

"I´m not criticizing you. When I fell for your mother I couldn´t stop thinking about her, about what could make her happy. My heart was thriving every time I saw her and, as a time passed, we eventually grew closer. Are you feeling like this for someone? I can help you if I know the lucky lady´s name"

Byleth stood silent for a moment. The frequency he had been thinking about her had increased as time passed and he had been feeling things he hadn´t felt until know when he was close to her. Thinking about it, he realized that what he was experiencing could be called love. But even if it was love he couldn´t do anything about it. When the academy year ended their paths would take different directions.

"Aren´t you giving up too early? Well, I can´t really give advice about something like this. You are free to decide whatever you want. The fact that you can feel something like that is enough for me" said Sothis sitting on her stone throne, a gentle smile on her face.

"I might have, but I won´t do anything about it" Thinking about it was easier than saying it aloud, but he did it nevertheless; even if a part of him was saddened by the fact that she would eventually leave the monastery.

"Oh I see. She must be a noble if you are saying something like this. You don´t know what could happen if you try, but I won´t press you on this matter anymore. Don´t worry, someday you will find someone that suits you" his father said, rubbing his hair. "Help this old man to find the maps. I´m sure I put them over there, but I can´t find them. I guess that I´m growing old" he sighed.

After helping his father he decided to search for the Black Eagles students. He was turning a corner when he came across with the person who had been occupying his mind the last few days.

"Hello Edelgard. I didn´t expect to see you here" he then looked to Dorothea "Hello Dorothea"

"Hello Professor, just the person we wanted to see the most, right Edie?"

"I don´t know what you are talking about Dorothea" Edelgard said, her cheeks a bit red. "But I must admit that the Professor´s presence hasn´t been intolerable to me"

"So cold" she sighed.

"I wanted to tell you something important"

"Something important?"

"Yes, for the following days"

"Could it be?!" Dorothea exclaimed with a singing voice.

"My Teacher, please continue. I´m afraid that Dorothea is implying unrelated things" Edelgard said her ears turning red.

"We will be leaving tomorrow to an expedition to the Leicester Alliance. I´m sorry for interrupting your rest, but it is something urgent. The student´s of the Golden Deer and Ingrid will come with us. I want you to tell the rest of the students about this matter"

"Professor, you ruined the mood with your expedition talk" complained Dorothea. "But since you are helping my dear Ingrid I will give it a pass. I´m happy she decided to ask for your help. Come on Edie, we don´t want to let down our dear Professor"

"Control yourself Dorothea" Edelgard said hurriedly walking past him.

"These two are really strange today. I wonder what has happened to them, especially the little Princess" Sothis said

"I wonder what they were talking about"

"With so much work you are doing for the monastery you should get a better payment"

"I have no complaints about my wage. It is enough to buy everything I need. Talking about it, I will have to buy more equipment for our current tasks"

With nothing much left to do at the monastery Byleth headed to the town to prepare his equipment for the following day.

…..

Closing the door behind her, Edelgard sighed relieved. She tried her best to persuade Dorothea about giving up her plans, but she wasn´t sure she had succeeded. It was almost relieving to know that from tomorrow they were heading to the battlefield again. "I will cherish these memories forever, but I can´t put my plans at risk just for the sake of my own happiness".

She was about to touch her armored bear stuffy when she heard someone knocking the door.

When she opened it she saw the face of that disgusting creature.

"Good evening Monica"

"Good evening Edel. I was waiting for a visit from you, how rude!"

"I told you to not use my name like that. It disgusts me"

"I heard we are going on an expedition to the Leicester Alliance. I can´t wait to join the fight" she said with a smile, but the way she was smiling made her shiver.

"If you ever hurt any of them you will pay for that with your life"

"Menacing me uh? Don´t worry, I will be a good girl. I wouldn´t want to be sent to investigation again" she said, her eyes showing a bit of fear before she changed to her usual self. "I will be preparing my equipment. I hope you can rest well"

As soon as she came she left, leaving Edelgard alone with a bitter taste in her mouth. "She enjoys pestering me, but she will regret that. At least, we will have capable warriors to get her under control if she tries to skip her orders" she thought. She looked to her desk, but she didn´t see any letter from her uncle. She had been asking about the whereabouts of Jeritza, but she had only received silence as an answer.

"I have a bad feeling about this" she thought as she sat on her bed, embracing the armored bear stuffy that her Teacher had gifted her what appeared to be another life. "If life were easier I could…No, there is no point about thinking something like that" she said as she embraced the stuffy harder.

**10/28**

"Are you going to bring the Sword of the Creator?"

"We are going to face monsters and pirates. It would be reckless if I didn´t use every weapon at reach"

"You are right about that, but don´t abuse its power. You know what happens when you do it" warned him Sothis.

"Don´t worry. I have learned from my mistakes"

The outside was still dark when he left his room, already wearing his travelling clothes. He then headed to the gates of the monastery.

"Good morning Professor. It seems that you are an early bird too" commented Shamir, that was already wearing her sniper clothes. "This is going to be our first time fighting together. I´ve heard about your ability with the sword, but I´m curious about how many weapons you can handle."

"Apart from the sword I can use the axe and the lance"

"How about bows?"

"I barely use them" he had to admit.

"Lances and bows are the things I specialize. You don´t have to worry about that. This trip is going to be a long one. I can give you one of my bows if you want to practice a bit during our journey"

"Thank you"

They remained silent after that, although it wasn´t an uncomfortable one. They didn´t have to wait for too long until his father and Alois appeared, although it could be more appropriate to say that Alois was chasing his father.

"Jeralt, wait a second!"

"I already know that you are looking forward for our little trip, there is no need to repeat it every single time" he sighed.

"I just wanted to thank you properly. Besides, to make things go smoother I spent part of the night preparing some jokes. I´m sure that the students will enjoy all of them as I do" he laughed.

"You really are helpless" Shamir sighed.

"Come on. Byleth, what do you think about my jokes?"

"They are terrible"

"Oh, really? Even if you say so you will change your opinion when I read the ones I wrote this night. Just wait for it"

"I will be making the first guard then" Shamir said.

After a short while the students arrived. The first ones to arrive were the leaders of each house. Claude was accompanied by Hilda and Edelgard was accompanied by Hubert and Monica.

"Good morning Teach, the rest of us will arrive in a moment. Don´t worry, you won´t have to wait"

"Waking up so early has already exhausted me" Hilda said while yawning.

"Good morning Professor. I can say the same about the Black Eagles"

"You don´t have to worry Edelgard. I´m sure they will arrive punctually. Your Pegasus and Petra´s are ready over there" Edelgard had a gentle smile on her face, but he noticed a shadow of anger the moment Monica approached him.

"I will do my best too, Professor. I will show you that I´m not a frail flower" Monica said with a wide smile.

"You are so lively Monica. I supposed you would be more introverted after everything that has happened to you" commented Hilda, looking at her with a serious face.

"It´s my only way to overcome the difficult times I´ve experienced in my short life."

"I didn´t mean to criticize you. I was just curious about that, that´s it"

They didn´t have to wait for too long until the rest of the students appeared.

"Professor, you lied to us. You said we were free to rest until next month"

"Don´t complain so much Linhardt. This will be another opportunity to grow!"

"You are really lively Caspar" giggled Hilda.

"That´s the problem" Linhardt said sighing.

"If the Professor wants me to come I will go"

"Of course Petra, the Professor is pleased to see all of us together" smiled Dorothea, although her eyes were more focused on Edelgard.

"I will do my best too, but please don´t send me to the frontlines"

"Don´t worry Bernadetta"

"Lorenz, what a wonderful opportunity to meet again!"

"The pleasure is mine Ferdinand!"

"Oh no, I forgot about those two" sighed Dorothea.

"I agree with her, the blowfishes" commented Sothis, making him smile.

"Look Lorenz, the Professor is pleased to see us reunited again"

"Good morning Professor. Hello Edelgard" said Lysithea, approaching them accompanied by Marianne and Leonie.

"Jeralt! I can´t wait to fight again alongside you"

"Merciful Goddess, please protect us"

"Sorry for making all of you wait" Ignatz said, accompanied by Raphael and a still sleepy Flayn.

"Now that everyone is here, let´s head to the Alliance" he said as he rode his mount to the gates of the monastery, heading to the east.


	36. Death toll

**10/30 Wyvern moon**

After leaving behind the lands of the monastery they followed the roads that the merchants used to follow in their trips to the monastery.

"The conditions of these roads had always been good. I guess that despite the rivalry between the different houses the Leicester Alliance values trade above everything else" commented his father, which was riding next to him.

"More than trade what they value is the money they can gain from it" Raphael laughed.

"You have a good point there Raphael. We are always competing against each other. If we could get along everything would go smoother" sighed Claude. "But don´t tell the little Princess. I don´t want her to lecture me about ruling a country" he said as he looked to the sky.

As he did during their trip to the north he had sent Edelgard, Petra and Ingrid to patrol the areas surrounding them. His own Pegasus wanted to join them, but he wanted to be in contact with the rest of the group and his father. "You will fly later" he promised him, caressing its neck.

"Do you like animals?" asked a voice behind him, almost a whisper. When he looked behind him he saw Marianne, the Golden Deer student that had almost no chance to speak with.

"Sorry, I didn´t want to disturb you" she quickly apologized.

"You don´t disturb me, I like them. I´ve seen you taking care of the horses back in the monastery"

"They are always a nice company" she shyly smiled, before her face darkened again. "You shouldn't speak with me. I only attract misfortune" and before he could say anything else she rode in a different direction.

"What is wrong with that girl?" asked Sothis, inside his head. "She looks so pessimistic"

"She might have some hidden story behind her"

"Don´t worry Professor. Marianne is not a person that likes to talk, but I can assure you that she is very nice" Hilda said approaching him.

"I hope she is ok"

"I´m sure she will be happy to hear that from you. By the way Professor, when we battle don´t put me in the frontline. I´m frail and I don´t want to get hurt. I´m sure I will be a greater asset for our battles if I remain far away from the battlefront, cheering up the rest of the students"

"What are you saying Hilda?" Claude laughed. "You are very strong. The only thing I fear more than your axe is the little Princess´s one"

"That´s not the thing I want to be praised about. You barely help me, despite asking for your help"

"You are too lazy for your own good"

Leaving them to their small quarrel, Byleth checked all of his students. Lysithea was eating sweets, but every time she put them in her mouth she made sure that no one was looking at her. Flayn was doing the same, but wasn´t really worried about her surroundings and Linhardt was almost sleeping on his horse. Ferdinand and Lorenz were lively talking between them. Raphael, Caspar and Ignatz were riding together, the first two almost shouting to each other as if that were the normal way they talked to each other. Bernadetta and Dorothea were also riding together, but what caught his attention were Hubert and Monica. They were riding next to each other, but Hubert was clearly looking displeased by her presence, a sinister aura emanating from him.

"I´ve never seen him like that. He must reserve that look to those who hates the most." Sothis said.

He knew that Monica used to be by the side of Edelgard too often, but he had the feeling that there was more to it than that.

"Byleth, do you want to join us? You look like a sergeant, making sure that everyone is alright" Shamir said.

Alois and Shamir were at the rearguard of their column. By the look of Shamir eyes he knew that she had had enough of Alois´s tasteless jokes.

"Of course"

"Oh Byleth. It´s a pleasure to take part in an expedition with you and Jeralt. I feel like I was young once again."

"How did you meet my father?"

"Jeralt came to my village with his group of soldiers and helped us getting rid of a group of bandits. I was impressed by his leading aura and when he bestowed his eyes upon me and decided to train me I left everything to be part of his group. It was really an incredible experience. Thanks to him I entered the knights of Seiros and here you see me now. The protector of the monastery" he said laughing.

"I wonder if Jeralt left the knights of Seiros to get rid of you"

"That´s too harsh Shamir! Forgive her Byleth. Her lack of sense of humor is what causes her behavior. If you want I can tell some jokes to improve the mood of our advance through the Alliance territories" he said as he started to search his compilation of jokes.

"There is no need to do it now; you can reserve it for…later"

"I will give my best when that time comes"

He remained with them chatting for a bit, although the one that was talking the most was Alois, since Shamir and him weren´t that used to long conversations. After a while he excused himself and decided to make his way to the front of the column.

"Professor, there is no need to check everything around us like that. I´m sure that if she spotted something suspicious Edie would quickly come to report it to us"

"You may be right about that, but I don´t want to see any of you getting in trouble"

"Thank you Professor. Thanks to you I can be at peace even if I´m not inside my room"

"I couldn´t forgive anyone who could hurt such a cute thing like you Bernie." Dorothea said smiling to Bernadetta, making her blush. "By the way Professor, do you have any plans for the next month?"

"Since we are taking three different expeditions I think we have everything settled for next month. Apart from that I haven´t thought about anything in particular"

"You really don´t have any plans?" Dorothea asked with a surprised look on her face, before quickly changing to a mischievous face. "Then I will take it as an opportunity" she said as she looked at him and at the skies.

Wondering about the meaning of Dorothea´s words Byleth continued his path to the front of the column.

"I can´t wait to see your skills in action, master Jeralt"

"You can just call me Jeralt, Leonie. It´s been a while since the last time I trained you"

"Even if it's true I will always consider you my master. You taught me a lot back in the day" She then looked at Byleth, when she noticed he was approaching them.

"It doesn´t matter if you are Jeralt´s son. I will show you that I´m well prepared for battle"

"Reserve that energy for our enemies." Jeralt laughed. "I´m sure we will be busy shortly. I recall this area from my last expedition. If we follow this route we will be arriving there by tomorrow. We will have to be careful from now on. We will use that place as a camp" he said pointing to a group of large stones that were in the distance. The rocks will act as a cover and there are streams nearby so we won´t have any problems to establish a camp."

"I agree with you, father. Besides, we will have a greater view of our surroundings and there are no forests nearby so our enemies will be spotted if they dare to attack us there"

"You are starting to talk like a tactician Teach. I like that"

The sun was starting to descend in the horizon when they arrived to their future camp. "Good job everyone. We will prepare our camp here; help us getting it ready before it gets dark"

After everyone headed to their respective duties, he waited for his three Pegasus riders to arrive. The first one to arrive was Petra, closely followed by Ingrid and Edelgard.

"Any new findings?"

"The area is clear. We haven´t seen any signs of beasts or merchants around"

"You have all done a great job. My father suspects we will be shortly meet them by tomorrow, rest well and stay alert"

"To rest well we need to eat well, don´t you think Professor?" Petra asked him.

"I agree with her. A good meal would do wonders for me after spending most of the time flying"

"I must agree on that matter too, my Teacher. May I ask who is going to make the meal tonight?"

He was about to say he didn´t know who was going to prepare it when some of his students voices reached them.

"This looks so tasty!"

"Caspar, what are you doing?"

"I´m preparing the meal for today Linhardt. Raphael is helping me"

"Helping? Both of you are eating every last one of them. That´s not fair game. Who chose you, by the way?"

"I did, they looked as interested in making dinner as I did so I thought they could lend me a hand" he could hear Alois´s voice.

"My Teacher, we should go, before we end with our stomachs empty" Edelgard sighed.

In the end he prepared the dinner with the help of Flayn and Lysithea. Lysithea was focused on preparing some sweet dishes as she told him and Flayn was happy to lend a hand with everything she could and her smile grew wider when he told her they were having fish for dinner. After a while they had everything prepared.

"Dinner is ready"

As he said it everyone started to take their sit around the fire. He sat next to his father, which was already taking his ration.

"You´ve always had a good hand with cooking son." He said as he rubbed his hair.

"He isn´t the only one that helped, the sweets are delicious, right Edelgard?"

"I couldn´t agree more with you, Lysithea" Edelgard said with a gentle smile.

"Is there something you can´t do Teach?"

"Telling jokes. You can´t know if he is telling the truth or he is just messing with us" Linhardt sighed.

"Talking about jokes, my time has arrived. I will show…agh!" Alois was about to speak when Shamir put a fish into his mouth.

"If you don´t stop talking dinner is going to get cold, Alois. I´m doing this for your own good"

"Even if we are here to fight I´m happy to be with everyone. I don´t usually cook since my brother is already very good at cooking, but I´m happy to have lent a hand. Professor, you should take a taste of my brother´s food. He is quite good"

"I will….consider it. Thank you Flayn" It was a fact that Seteth trusted him more than before, but asking him to prepare something for him was asking too much.

They spent the rest of the time eating and chatting. He made sure that everyone was enjoying their time, although his eyes were inexplicably attracted to Edelgard. She was sitting next to Hubert, who appeared to be acting as a wall between her and Monica.

"I wonder what kind of problem they have over there" He thought. He was tempted to ask, but he didn´t want to endanger their teamwork, not before a battle at least.

…..

"It´s time to rest, we will resume our march tomorrow at dawn. Make sure that you are well prepared since it is highly possible that we face our enemy before the end of the day" he then looked to Alois and Shamir. "Alois, I leave you in charge of the boys, Shamir, the same with the girls. I will prepare our strategy for tomorrow with my father"

"Leave it to my Byleth. I won´t disappoint you"

"You have already heard him, it´s time to get some rest"

After dispatching both of them and the rest of the students he entered the tent he was sharing with his father. They had three big tents prepared, two for the students and one for him and his father. Since it was highly probable they would face their enemies tomorrow he couldn´t allow his students to chat until late, even if he wanted them to enjoy their time together.

"Here is the map of our surroundings." Jeralt explained to him as he entered the tent. This area is highly used by merchants that head to the territories of Riegan. Since those are the ones that are attacked the most it is highly probable that an attack is going to happen there."

"How about these bridges?"

"Several rivers and streams cross this area and there are some forests as well so this area is well suited for ambushes. The enemy surely knows about it, but we could use the terrain to our own benefit as well"

"We could use the bridges as bottlenecks. We have plenty of mages and archers as well as flying units. If we use distance as our fighting method and defend the area of the bridges we could stop our enemy even if they had the numbers"

"The only problem is going to be the wolves. They have quite the size, but they are not invincible. A well-aimed attack will do short work of them."

"That´s what we will be doing then"

"I´m looking forward to our fight. I want to see with my own eyes the training you have given to your students"

"They won´t disappoint you, father" he promised with a smile on his face. He then looked to the relic he had received from Lorenz in their last expedition to the Leicester Alliance. "A magic user could do a great use of it" he thought, the image of a young girl coming to his mind.

…..

"We have finally arrived. And the situation doesn´t look fine" he said as he saw a group of soldiers and wolves chasing panicking merchants. "The bridges are in control of our enemies, if we don´t act quickly they are going to be slaughtered." He then looked to his students. "Archers block the nearest bridge to our side. Mages accompany the advance of our infantry to the south. We need to arrive to the bridge as soon as possible"

"I can buy some time warping you there" Lysithea said, holding the relic he had given her the very same morning.

"Do it! Make them regret the day they were born!" he shouted to all of them. "I give you the control of the ground troops, father"

"Hell yeah!" shouted Caspar.

The students around him disappeared as he appeared on the group of warriors guarding one of the bridges.

"What?!"

They didn´t have time to react as they were swiftly decapitated by the Sword of the Creator. Cutting the ropes of the bridge it started to descend, but he didn´t have time to check the advance of his father and the rest of the students. He had to save the merchants.

"Over here!" he shouted as they were running away from one of the wolves. "We are here to rescue you"

"Thank Goodness, kill that beast before it kills all of us!" cried one of them.

The giant wolf suddenly stopped the moment he saw him ridding his Pegasus. It then charged at him with the mouth wide open.

In a split of a second he changed the direction of his flight, avoiding the beast´s attack. He then counterattacked cutting the tendons of the hind legs of the beast.

With a horrifying howl the beast cried the moment his sword bit its flesh. It tried to throw him a tree, but it was suddenly attacked by Edelgard and Petra. Edelgard released a brutal attack with her axe to the beast´s head and it was no more.

"Good job Edelgard, Petra" he shouted. He then looked to the merchants. "Take my Pegasus to arrive to safety". Edelgard, Petra, each one of you pick a merchant and leave them in a safe place.

"Understood!"

After making sure they were flying to a safe place a howl made him look to the front. More wolves were starting to appear accompanied by more soldiers.

"They are fighting together. Are they trained to act like that?"

One of the cavaliers was charging at him, but he was brutally stopped by the lance of his father. He wasn´t his only reinforcement. After securing the bridge, most of his students were taking positions in the other side.

The magic of his mages were causing havoc between the enemy lines, especially the spells of Lysithea, which had an impressive reach. "It must be the power of the relic". He also saw Monica mercilessly killing the foes that stood at her path with a short blade. "She is really good"

His thoughts were interrupted when one brigand came charging at him, but he wasn´t a worthy opponent to his sword. They were doing short work of the human enemies, but the wolves were coming closer.

"They got me!" he could hear Monica´s voice. He rushed to her position as soon as possible. Monica was trapped by one of the beasts, which was slowly opening his mouth to shallow her.

"Look over here!" he shouted as he released the whip form of the Sword of the Creator to the beast. The attack impacted in one of the beast eyes making it cry an inhuman howl. Focusing on him, the beast charged at him. When it was about to hit him he jumped to one of the sides and then used the whip again to climb the beast´s back. The giant wolf was in a frenzy state trying to get rid of it, but it couldn´t. Climbing to its head he started to cut through it. The beast blindly charged against the enemy´s army, impacting with one of the wolves. The impact was so brutal that both of them fell to the river next to them.

Byleth felt the hit of the cold water as he tried to arrive to the bank of the river. Both beasts were trying to do the same, but the half-blinded one was in a berserk like state and was attacking the other one.

"Only a bit more" he thought.

He was already getting up when he received an impact from a rock. The impact sent him to the ground again. He felt an intense pain in the area of his ribs. "I must have broken a pair of them at least" he thought. Coughing a bit of blood he crawled to the Sword of the Creator, which shined with renewed energy the moment he touched it with his bloodied hand. He then got up, but he wasn´t in the bank of the river anymore, but in Gronder.

"Press forward! This is the time we have been waiting for! I will make death rain upon them as they did to our brethren." Macuil shouted next to him casting giant meteors that were falling on the ground.

"Why they have an army of such a size?" complained Indech, shooting arrows at an inhuman speed.

"The argarthans must be aiding them." said Cichol, which was flying above them, riding a wyvern of a magnificent size.

"They will fall as well. Don´t let them escape!" he ordered. "I will recover you mother. I won´t let them escape unscathed of the crime they have committed" he said as he cut his path through the enemy lines using his holy sword. Human or argarthan it didn´t matter, his sword cut through them as if they were made of butter. He then looked to the top of a hill a few meters from him. He was there, wielding the Sword of the Creator, accompanied by two mages that appeared to be agarthans"

"Come here Nemesis, you will pay for your crimes here and now! I will have my revenge!"

"You are a fool if you think you can defeat me when I have the power of a god." Nemesis said, he then looked to the mages around him. "Destroy her, made her rot in hell"

A tempest of fire and lightning fell upon him, but he didn´t back down. He continued slaying enemies using his immense strength. "Is this the power of a god?" he laughed. "I will crush all of you like the unworthy bugs you are" he then directly looked at Nemesis into the eye. "And you will pay the most for it. When I lay my hands on you, you will pray for your death. Your suffering has just begun!"

He was within reach. He was about to attack him, when a shadow stabbed him in the back, making him momentarily lose all of his strength.

"You are a fool Seiros, we know the weakness of your kind. You will pay your insolence trying to face us" said a pale man with a sinister smile on his face, which was wielding a sword with strange glyphs on it. "Kill her and fulfill your destiny, king of liberation"

"It will be a pleasure" Nemesis said as he approached.

"It cannot end like this" he thought, closing his eyes.

"I´m sorry Nemesis, but I can´t allow myself to be on the losing side"

"Wilhelm, you traitor!"

"I have an empire to fight for. I will do anything to fulfill my own dreams"

Wilhelm had stopped the attack aimed to him; regaining his lost strength he attacked the argarthans surrounding both of them, slaughtering them like the animals they were. He was about to face Nemesis once again when he disappeared in a purple cloud.

"Don´t run away coward!" he shouted, but it was already too late.

Seeing the disappearance of its leader, the enemy army was running away in disarray.

"We have won an important battle" Wilhelm said next to him.

"It isn´t enough until they disappear from this world" He then looked to Macuil. "Macuil cast a real hell upon them, don´t lend any of them survive"

"It will be a pleasure" Macuil said with a sadistic smile on his face, he extended his arms and a few seconds later a real inferno unfolded in front of them, the cries of people being burned alive filling their ears, the smell of burning flesh everywhere.

"Such a waste of resources. Some of them could have fought for our cause" Wilhelm commented, although he was more curious than displeased by the massacre happening in front of him.

"Those who fight against our creator don´t deserve a second opportunity. Don´t question my methods." He then looked to his own reflection on his shield. The determination filling his green eyes were irradiating an energy rivaling the sun itself.

"My Teacher!"

Edelgard was next to him, an axe in her hand. "There are too many of them!"

The pack of wolves had grown into an impressive size. His father and the rest of students were trying to repel them, but their numbers were just increasing. If he wanted to save everyone he didn´t have any other option, but to fight back.

"We don´t have time to run away. I will use the power of the Sword and my crest to its maximum power" he said, although his blood was feeling like it was boiling.

"But you are injured."

"Don´t worry Edelgard, I will get through this. For you, for the rest of my students" he said smiling to her despite his pain, he then charged to the enemy wolves.

Letting the power of the crest of flames extending through his body he accumulated his energy on the sword, which was shining as the sun itself and released it at once using his sword as a whip. Each time that the sword impacted against an enemy it released potent explosions that also damaged the surroundings. When the sword returned to its original form he could see the devastation he has caused. All of the wolves were death and most of the soldiers too, but it came with a price. He was completely exhausted and he had to grasp the sword to avoid collapsing from exhaustion.

"What the hell had just happened?" said an armored knight looking at its surroundings, he then looked at him. If I kill you I´m sure I will receive a generous reward" he said, as he charged at him with his lance.

He was almost on him when he heard the clash of iron against iron. When he looked again he could see a familiar back in front of him.

"You must be the leader of the assaulters. I won´t let you lay your hands on him!" Edelgard said as she was blocking the attack. She then released a brutal blow to the knight that fell to the ground never to move again.

"It´s over" he thought.

Edelgard approached him and helped him to get up again. "My Teacher, you look completely exhausted. Even though the use of the Sword was decisive for this battle I hope you don´t have to use it more anytime soon. I wish I could do something more for you"

"I hope that as well. You don´t have to worry Edelgard. You have fulfilled your role as well as I expected"

They reunited with the rest of the group. Most of them were exhausted, but none was particularly injured.

"Impressive show of force, Professor" said an unusually awakened Linhardt. "I never thought your body could have so much power" he said as he applied the physic spell on him.

"We also did our part, Linhardt!" shouted Caspar "Although it is true that the Professor is really strong"

"You have earned a good rest Teach. That was a good show"

"Where are the merchants?"

"They are over there."Claude said pointing a place where the merchants were talking with Ignatz and Raphael.

"I will go to meet them"

"My Teacher you should rest for a bit"

"Thank you for worrying about me, Edelgard, but after receiving Linhardt´s magic I´m confident I can walk a bit on my own."

He left the rest of the group and headed to the small hill where the merchants were chatting.

"Thank you so much. We´re safe and is all due to your efforts! I don´t dare to imagine what would have been of us if you hadn´t appeared." One of the merchants said.

"A happy ending for everyone" Raphael said with a smile.

"Were you heading to the Riegan Dukedom?" Ignatz asked.

"We were, I´ve heard rumors about the dangers of the route, but I never expected to see a horde of wolves like that. Ignoring the capital is impossible in terms of profit. I don´t understand what Count Gloucester is thinking"

"This is the Count´s doing?" he asked remembering the time they have spent at Gloucester.

"Looks that way. He may be displeased by the trade routes contributing to the wealth of House Riegan. It seems like he has been at odds with them forever. They say even the previous Duke Riegan´s death…"

"It cannot be…" said a surprised Raphael.

"It´s only a rumor but I think there is some truth behind it. He invited the duke to his estate to strike a deal on some valuable art pieces. The Duke accepted and was accompanied by other two merchants, but a misfortune happened and they all died, although the circumstances surrounding their deaths remain unclear" he then looked to Byleth. "I will generous reward you for saving our lives. Since you came from Garreg Mach I will send your reward to that place. Now if you excuse me" he said as he left, accompanied by the rest of the merchants.

"I´m sorry Raphael"

"You didn´t kill them, you don´t have to feel sorry about it" Raphael said, he then looked to Byleth. "Those merchants were my parents."

"My parents were the ones supposed to accompany the Duke, but a more urgent matter appeared and they recommended Raphael´s parents. And now the son of Count Gloucester is among us…"

"Stop there Ignatz. Lorenz has nothing to do with this! Even if his father was responsible of the death of my parents I will never use that as a reason to hate him" Raphael shouted.

"But, if they hadn´t gone…"

"My parents died because of a tragic attack. There is no denying about that. But that doesn´t mean we have to be fighting each other about our past. This battle has made me hungry. I wonder what we will have to celebrate" he said as he left both of them alone.

"Raphael is a very nice guy" Byleth had to admit.

"He really is. Despite all his suffering he has a smile on his face. I wish I could be as stronger as him"

"You have your own strength Ignatz. I´m sure about that"

"I feel honored by your words, Professor. Let´s follow him. I´m sure we will hold a big celebration" Ignatz said with a gentle genuine smile. "And thank you for saving them. If it weren´t for you things could have ended badly.

He accompanied him. He was completely exhausted, but at the same time happy that he could use the power within it for a good cause. "Even if I keep having these visions about a past long ago forgotten I won´t allow them to shape me. I´m Byleth Eisner and I will cut my own path"

"I´m happy to hear that" Sothis said, sitting on her stone throne. "Don´t ever forget what you are. Don´t let the Sword of the Creator change you. You are perfect as you are. But take some rest I don´t want your poor students to get worried about your wellbeing."

"Taking a nap from time to time could be great"

"Great minds think the same" Sothis said, smiling to him as he approached his dear students.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The attack that Byleth uses against the beasts is Ruptured Heaven. Also don´t confuse Seiros with Rhea. They are two sides of the same coin.


	37. Sword and shield of Seiros

**11/2 Red wolf moon**

The day was turning gray as they had the first sight of the city.

"We have finally arrived. I can´t see any smoke coming from the city yet so I guess that we have arrived before their attack" Claude commented next to him. "The wind coming from the west must have slowed them down"

"Even if that is true we don´t have time to lose." He said as he saw a group of sails in the horizon. "We have to hurry up."

"Teach bring me to the city using your Pegasus Knight. As the future ruler of the Leicester Alliance the forces of the city will quickly follow our command if I arrive with you"

"Understood. The rest of you ride as fast as you can. We will meet at the main square of the city. Edelgard, Petra and Ingrid, with me!"

They flew forwards the capital as fast as they could. When they arrived to the walls of the city a group of soldiers was preparing to attack them, but they stopped the moment they realized they weren´t pirates. They landed at the central square, their surroundings full of activity.

"We are here to help all of you" said Byleth as he got off his horse.

"The Church has listened to us!" said one of the soldiers.

"Not only the Church." said Claude, walking next to him. "How are the defenses of the city?"

"I didn´t expect to see you here, my lord. The harbor is completely closed, we have archers on the walls and we are preparing the ballistae."

"That would suffice if we were going to face normal pirates, but I have the feeling that the place they are coming from might be…"

"Wyverns!" shouted one of the soldiers.

"To the Pegasus now!" said Byleth climbing again his own mount and heading to the harbor.

A group of 6 wyverns was quickly approaching them. The riders were wearing heavy armor and holding axes, but what called Byleth´s attention was the platting of the wyverns armor. "That pattern… They are from Almyra."

"Split!" He said as the riders changed the trajectory of their flight to attack them. Two of them charged at him from the sides, so he decided to fly under them. The wyverns were fast, but his Pegasus was light weighted and could outmaneuver them with sharp turns. After a sharp turn to the left, he repositioned behind one of the riders and casted a fire spell. The impact made the rider fall to the water, where his heavy armor did the rest of the job, but that wasn´t enough. A wyvern alone was a menace that he needed to get rid of.

Freed from his rider the beast tried to reach the walls of the city but it was shot down by an arrow aimed to its eye. Searching for the author of the shot he could see a familiar yellow clothed student at the walls. Knowing that the walls were well secured he headed to fight the second wyvern rider. This time he flew close to it and used his silver sword to attack the beast at the weak spots below the wings. The rider tried to attack him with his axe, but he didn´t have a good position and he missed the attack. Wounded, the beast panicked and tried to land, but rider and mount were both shot down by arrows.

With his enemies already defeated he looked around to find Edelgard, Ingrid and Petra. Edelgard was making short work of her enemies, her shield stopping the axe attacks from the rider and the bites of the beast until she got rid of both of them. In the case of Ingrid she had used her agility to avoid the attacks of the beast and after exhausting it she had retaliated with success. He was wondering where Petra was when he heard Petra´s war cry.

Petra had jumped from its Pegasus to the back of the Wyvern, using her killer sword she impaled the rider, which fell to the sea. The beast tried to resist its new owner, but Petra seemed to be used to that and in a short while the beast calmed down landing in the wooden platforms of the harbor. Byleth landed next to her and a few seconds later Edelgard followed suit.

"Great job, both of you"

"They must be scouts. The main offensive line must be waiting in the ships." Edelgard said looking to the sea, the ships growing dangerously closer. "We must hurry up to prepare our defenses or the city will be in great danger.

"You are right. I hope the rest of the group has already arrived." He then looked to Petra "Can you handle the Wyvern?"

"Of course Professor. I defeated its previous master, now it will respect me. I will fight against them as we do in Brigid"

"Let´s return to the main square"

He was pleased to see that the rest of their force had arrived.

"Archers, secure the walls we don´t want any beast wandering the streets of the city"

"Teach I can use the remaining Pegasus to help you up there. I have a good hand with flying creatures"

"Understood, you will stay with us then"

"You have heard Byleth, with me!" shouted Shamir as she left to the walls accompanied by Ignatz and Bernadetta"

"The rest to the gates. The city has two main gates so we will have to reinforce them the best we can. Raphael, Leonie, Ferdinand, my Father and Alois will secure the gate next to the docks. Lorenz, Caspar, Hilda to the south. Flayn, Linhardt and Marianne remain close to both places. We will need your healing soon. Monica, protect our healers in case that the pirates break our defenses. In the case of offensive mages Hubert and Dorothea will support the south and Lysithea will help our troops next to the harbor. Understood?"

"Spoken like a true commander" Jeralt smiled to him. "You have already heard my son, it´s time to teach these pirates what happens when they try to mess with us"

"Yes!"

With each one of them heading to their respective places he looked again to his flying units.

"Ours is going to be the greatest responsibility. I´m sure that we will have to face more wyvern riders. We must slow down their progress to avoid them getting into the city."

"We will prevail" Edelgard said looking at him, her eyes filled with determination.

"We will defeat them all" Petra shouted.

"I will give my best to protect the citizens and the rest of the students" assured him Ingrid.

"Prepare your mounts again" he said, when he saw a warehouse filled with barrels.

"What are they?" he asked

"Barrels filled with inflammable materials. The soldiers are bringing them out to avoid causing a fire within the city."

"Petra, do you think that you can carry some of those barrels while flying?"

"I can try to transport two of them, but then I won´t be able to move as fast"

"Don´t worry, we will cover you"

"My Teacher, are you planning to…"

"We will fight fire with fire" he said nodding at her.

"An interesting idea. You have heard the Professor, Petra we will cover you"

"Understood!"

Returning to the skies he could see that the ships were almost on them. There were 7 of them and he could see that the boards were filled with wyverns. Watching the threat in front of them he touched the Sword of the Creator that was still unused. "I don´t want to rely on it, but if the situation gets dire I will have to resort to it, for the sake of everyone"

"7 ships? They aren´t normal pirates"

"They must come from Almyra"

"You realized that too Teach. This is going to be a hard fight"

"Let´s take down some of those ships, before the Wyverns start flying. Petra, we cover you!"

"For Brigid" she shouted as she sent the Wyvern to one of the ships.

Realizing the upcoming attack some of the pirates rushed to their wyverns, the first ones of them starting to fly.

Byleth blocked the attack of one of the firsts to take off and pierced the beasts' eye, making both beast and rider fell to the sea. Claude was shooting arrows with great precision using his silver bow and Edelgard and Ingrid were taking down the wyverns that were trying to take off from the ship.

"I´m dropping it" Petra shouted as she dropped one of the large barrels.

The barrel was falling to the deck of the ship. Before it made contact with it Byleth casted a fire enchantment. The moment it touched the barrel it exploded engulfing in flames the deck of the ship. As the place turned into a living hell the wyverns on board panicked and ran away in complete disorder. The ones that approached the city were shot down by the archers at the walls.

After repeating the same procedure with another ship the smoke was so dense he they couldn´t see across it.

"Petra, return to the city and bring more barrels!" he shouted as he repelled a rider from one of the other ships.

"The more ships we take down, the better for the city" Claude said next to him as he shot down another wyvern.

They fought against them with everything they had, but they were clearly outnumbered. With the help of Petra they were able to take down another ship, but the other barrel was destroyed by a projectile before it could explode.

"Some of the ships had already arrived to the docks!" Claude shouted.

He could see his father riding a warhorse and fighting against the first wave of attackers. Their defenses were solid, but he knew that they needed to take down more ships if they wanted to succeed.

"Cover me!" he shouted as he dived into one of the ships.

Activating the power of his crest he concentrated the energy emanating from all his body into his hands and released a potent spell against one of the ships, making it explode, but it had a price when he saw the side part of his chest clothes stained with blood. "I´m not fully recovered yet from the attack of the other day" he thought.

"Good shot Teach! Can you make it work again?"

He was about to try charging his energy again, but was stopped by Edelgard.

"You are still injured from the battle of the other day. You have to know your…"

She couldn't complete her phrase as a harpoon coming from one of the ships pierced through her chest.

"Unexpected…" she said as she fell for her mount, her lips crimson red from the blood surrounding her mouth.

"NO!" he shouted. Using the power of Sothis, he returned back in time.

"Good shot Teach! Can you…"

Ignoring Claude he rushed to the closest ship to them, charging his arms with magic. As he approached he could see one of the pirates preparing the harpoon. As he looked at him, he released all the power he had charged into his arms, engulfing the ship in crimson flames. Feeling an intense pain in the thorax he tried to gain height, but one of the wyverns covered in flames impacted against him. The beast tried to devour his face, but he stopped it with his silver sword, swiftly killing it with the remaining strength he had. He was about to leave when the secondary mast of one of the burning ships hit him and his mount sending him to the sea.

He felt an intense cold as he came in contact with the water. He tried to reach for the surface, but the pain he was suffering was already unbearable. Feeling that water was starting to enter his lungs he realized he was drowning. His mind was starting to get dizzy when he felt soft, yet firm arms surrounding him and bringing him to the surface.

As he reached the surface he violently coughed and breathed. He then looked to his savior.

"You have to know your limits, my Teacher" Edelgard said, a worrying expression on her face.

"You are swimming" he said with an exhausted smile. "I didn´t want to lose you, sorry for making you worry about me"

"The battle is not done yet" she said as she helped him to climb to her Pegasus, which had entered its legs into the water to make the climbing easier. "Your efforts had given us the upper hand; let me finish what you started. Stay with me"

"Thank you" he simply said, resting his head on her back as they returned to the heights.

….

The battle around them was turning to their favor, with most of the ships destroyed there were only two of them that had made it to the surroundings of the harbor.

"It looks like the fighting is worse at the east gate of the city" she said as she saw Jeralt and their group of students trying to block the advance of the pirates. Without most of the wyverns they were relying on their infantry units to break through the city.

"Attack them from behind" her Teacher said in his usual tone. He wasn´t fully recovered from the injuries he had suffered the last battle, but the fact that he was able to talk normally relaxed her a bit.

"Claude, Petra, Ingrid. Follow me!" she shouted as they dived into their enemies.

The enemy soldiers were so focused in breaching into the city that they weren´t prepared to face an attack from the heights. She used her axe to hit some of them and the body of her mount to hit the others. With the distraction created by their attack Jeralt, Alois and the rest of the students charged against them.

"Good job" shouted her Teacher´s father, when he saw them attacking from behind. "Keep pushing! We almost have them!"

Being attacked from two different sides the pirates' formation started to crumble.

"Retreat to the ship" shouted what appeared to be their leader.

"Don´t let them escape" she shouted.

"Don´t worry Imperial Princess. I will give him a souvenir from Derdriu" Claude said as he shot an arrow.

The arrow pierced the captain´s chest, stopping him in his retreat. He was trying to get up again, but Jeralt was already on him, finishing him off with his silver lance. With the death of their leader the combat spirit of the pirates faded away, turning the battle into a persecution.

"Don´t run you cowards. Trying to attack innocents and running away when you face a worthy adversary. As expected from pirates" Alois said; his eyes full of fury. The ship was starting to leave the harbor when it was hit by two explosions. When she looked to the skies she could see the silhouette of Petra flying above her.

"Good job Petra!"

With the area secured she then headed to the south of the city, to assist the rest of the students, but the fight had almost ender over there. Craters of magic explosions were surrounded by the corpses of the pirates stupid enough to try a frontal attack against a wall of magic users. She could see Lysithea wielding a relic and releasing potent spells from an impressive distance. "She is really talented" she thought, smiling. Seeing the destruction of the other ships the last remaining ship had ran away using the cover of the smoke and destruction that was surrounding the harbor.

The surviving troops which had been abandoned were surrendering to their forces.

"The battle is over, my Teacher. One of the ships had regrettably run away, but the city is intact."

"All of you had done a great job. Please land in the main square, Flayn and Linhardt may be able to heal my injuries"

"Of course, but promise me one thing"

"Tell me?"

"Don´t try to sacrifice your own life like that. Most people would consider that heroism, but I don´t wish you to lose you anytime soon"

"Edelgard…I promise you I will fight to live. For you, for all of you." Her teacher said as his embraced grew tighter.

"It´s a promise then" she said as she felt her heart beating faster despite her exhaustion.

They landed at the main square of the city, where Linhardt and Flayn also appeared to be tired, but apart from that they didn´t have any injuries. Helping him to get off the Pegasus they approached them.

"Professor, why do you try so hard? You should rest for a while or your wounds will never heal" Linhardt complained.

"I was worried about you Professor. When I saw your mount coming here injured I feared for the worst, but luckily you have survived" Flayn said with a smile on her face. "Let me treat these wounds of you" she said as she placed her hands on his torso. A green cloud of magic started to form around them and a few seconds later there was only dried blood in the areas where he was previously injured.

"You will need to rest for a few days, no exceptions. Even healing magic had its limits. Your Pegasus also needs to rest for a few days"

"I´m sorry friend" her Teacher said as he caressed his mount. "I´m treating you very badly"

The Pegasus licked his face as response, making Flayn laugh.

"I guess that that means it forgives you"

"You really try hard, Professor" Monica said with a sweet smile. "You really want to save everyone, don´t you?"

"I do, like I did with you the other day. I must protect all of my students"

"And I must thank you for that." Her smile was warmth, but her eyes remained cold. "It´s a pity he saved you" she thought. She knew that she lacked the necessary empathy to feel thankful for the actions of her Professor.

A few moments later the rest of the students started to return to the square, some of them bringing prisoners.

"That was a hell of a battle!" Caspar shouted

"After this battle all I want to do is eat a big steak" said Raphael with a wide smile.

"I want to take a bath. These clothes will take an eternity to get clean again, Professor" complained Hilda.

"I´m sorry"

"Don´t worry Teach. It´s not a big deal, besides everyone seems to be fine. You should take a rest, though. If it weren´t for you the city would have fallen into their hands. We will have to take care of the destroyed ships, but I will leave that to the garrison of the city" he then looked to the prisoners. "Send them to the dungeons. We might find out something after questioning them" He then looked to everyone. "Please feel free to stay in my home once again. I think a few days of rest will do wonders to all of us, especially you, Teach. If I want to have a big barbecue I know that I can count with you"

She was helping the Professor walking when he was lifted by strong hands.

"It´s been a while since the last time I had to take you like this" Jeralt laughed. "Don´t worry I can bring him to his room, thanks for taking care of him" he said as he patted her head.

"Like father, like son" she thought as she followed the rest of the students, her eyes still focused on him.

….

"What a day I can barely move"

"You barely moved Linhardt"

"I was too busy trying to save your life. How troublesome" Linhardt said while yawning.

"Caspar, since you are so strong could you help me to lift some of my equipment?"

"Of course Hilda, where do you want to bring it?"

"To the third floor, but I´m sure you can handle it quite well. I asked Claude, but he didn´t want to help me. What a gentleman"

"I love you too Hilda" Claude laughed.

"You are as strong as I remember master Jeralt"

"I guess that training keeps you fit. You did well too Leonie"

"And me?!"

"Do you really need praise from me? You are a grown up man, Alois, but I guess that you did well too"

They were all sitting around the same table. Everyone except her Teacher, which was already resting in one of the rooms.

"It´s not over yet" Dorothea commented next to her. "We have to save my dear Ingrid from the claws of that evil man. I wouldn´t be able to sleep if she was taken from me"

"I guess that I should thank you for your kind words, Dorothea" Ingrid said, a bit embarrassed.

"For now just get some rest. Ailell is not a place I would like to go unprepared."Jeralt said. "Byleth and I will be preparing our strategy for the following days, but for now I think it would be better if he gets some sleep"

"Is he doing better?" she asked.

"He had seen better days, but he will get over it. We both have quite the resistance" he laughed.

…..

"Now that we have our stomachs full it´s time for a well deserved rest. You are free to go around the city from tomorrow until we leave this place, although the harbor is kind of a mess right now. Good night everyone" Claude said as he left the dining room.

Each one of them started to leave the room. Most of them were tired, but the relief on their faces was evident. She was about to leave when she saw Jeralt leaving the kitchens with a dish full of food.

"Do you want me to help you Jeralt?"

"Thank you. I was doing two trips to the kitchen, but with your help we can do it in one go. Take this. I´m sure my son will be hungry by now. He doesn´t eat that much, but I´m sure he will appreciate the quality of the food around here"

She followed him to Byleth´s room. It was the same room he had been using the last time they travelled to the Leicester Alliance capital. The windows were already closed, but the room was well illuminated thanks to the candles in it.

"Hello Byleth, how are you doing?"

"Hello father, Edelgard" he said with a faint smile. "It doesn´t hurt that badly"

"You have always been the type of person that says nothing about their own suffering. You should be more communicative about things like that"

"I don´t want all of you to worry about me"

"I must agree with your father on this matter, my Teacher. You shouldn´t push yourself so hard. We are happy that you worry about us, but you should worry about yourself too"

"I can´t agree more with her. We will be staying here until you are fully recovered. This battle was particularly hard; I hope that the rest of our trip goes smoother than this. First, a pack of wolves and then pirates riding wyverns. Thinking about the things we have come across with I think that a bit of lava won´t be too troublesome" Jeralt said laughing. "Eat it all. You have to get better"

"Thank you" Byleth said as he started eating.

They remained silent while he was eating. She decided to take a sit next to him and observed her surroundings. Apart from the battle equipment the room was particularly clean. She could see a board game on the table and the Sword of the Creator in one of the corners of the room. The sword was inactive, but the mere look at it made her shiver. She knew it wasn´t an ordinary weapon and it was more powerful than most of the other Hero relics, but she sensed there was something more to it. "He uses the power of the sword because he wants to protect us, but who can protect him?" she thought. She knew that in order to protect him they have to be stronger than they were. Only training harder they would be able to reduce the burdens of his position.

"My Teacher, do you want to play a few games?" she asked him looking at the board game on the table.

"I would like to"

"I will give it a try too" said Jeralt, taking a seat.

The three of them played a few matches and in the end she was the winner. After a while Jeralt excused himself and they continued playing the two of them. She was able to defeat him, but he opposed quite the resistance.

"You did well, my Teacher"

"I´m getting used to it thanks to you" he said with a faint smile. "Can you please take these dishes back to the kitchen? I´m sorry my father left earlier, he could have lent a hand"

"Don´t worry, if I can handle an axe I can do the same with a pair of dishes. I will return shortly"

She left the room and headed to the kitchens. The aisles were completely empty, only the sound of the fountain of the central garden could be heard. With the presence of members of the Church Monica had been more tamed, but she knew that she couldn´t be trusted. After leaving the dishes she returned to his room.

"My Teacher, do you want to try the rematch?" she asked. But she received no response. Approaching him she realized he had fallen asleep.

"He must be really tired if he is sleeping like that" she thought since his body was leaning yet on the bed headboard. "If he sleeps like that he is going to have back pain"

She gently moved him and placed his head on the pillow. Covering his body with the bed sheets she recalled the long ago forgotten days when she did the same to her younger sisters and brothers.

"It feels like yesterday" she thought, a bit of sadness and nostalgia entering her heart as she unconsciously caressed his hair. Realizing what she was doing her heartbeat grew faster, but she was relieved to know that Dorothea wasn´t around. "I hope that after all these fights she had forgotten about it" she said, a bit embarrassed of recalling the events previous to their expedition.

Blowing out the candles she looked once more to him. His face was his usual stoic self, but he appeared to be at peace. "Good night Byleth, I will come over here tomorrow" she said as she closed the door.

….

**11/7**

He was feeling better after a few days of rest. Flayn, Linhardt and Marianne had been visiting him and applying healing magic on him. He had received visits from all of his students and he was visited by Edelgard every day. Feeling that his strength had returned he got up and left his room and headed to the dining room.

All of his students, his father and the members of the Church were taking their breakfast there.

"Morning Teach. I´m happy to see you here"

"Good morning everyone" he then looked at Linhardt "Happy birthday Linhardt. I´m sorry I couldn´t buy something for you"

"Don´t worry Professor. There is no bigger present for me than seeing you get better"

"Oh Linhardt. That was so beautiful. If you were like that always you would be so charming. You should have told all of us about your birthday thought" Dorothea said.

"Don´t misunderstand things Dorothea. It´s troublesome to take care of the Professor since he is always in situations of danger and celebrating is so exhausting that I prefer doing nothing"

"Don´t worry Dorothea. He had always been like that" Caspar laughed.

"I´m glad to see you better" Edelgard welcomed him with a gentle smile.

"Now that everyone is here we can talk about our next task. If we follow the coastline we will have arrived in two days. It isn´t too far away from here. After that we can make our return through the Holy Kingdom or remain in the Alliance. No matter what we do we would be arriving to the monastery around the middle of this month"

"We should be leaving before the day ends." Shamir said as she sipped a cup of coffee. "We shouldn´t leave the monastery low of personal. We have already fulfilled our role here"

"You have a point there. We will be leaving in a few hours then. Make sure that you don´t forget anything or you will have to do all the way to the capital"

"But Professor, Sir Jeralt, it´s my birthday"

"You have just said it was too troublesome to celebrate"

"If I have to choose between celebrating or leaving I prefer staying"

"You are really beyond redemption" Caspar sighed.

…

With his equipment ready Byleth was already waiting at the entrance of Claude´s mansion. Most of his students appeared to have replenished their energies and he was feeling better. He had decided to not use the Sword of the Creator for the rest of the month, since he sensed he was abusing its power.

"Time to leave Derdriu again" said Claude, waiting next to him. "When we finish the academic year we could go on holidays here. Do you want to give it a try Teach?"

"Every time I find you with the Professor alone you are trying to persuade him about something Claude" said Edelgard, approaching them.

"It´s a nice place to stay for a while. That´s all. Take it easy" he laughed. The merchants were reassuming their activities as if the attack of the other day had never happened. When they looked at them they smiled and even some of them waved hands.

"They know we protected the city. It´s not too bad feeling like a hero for a while. Oh look, that old lady is beckoning both of you. He may want to thank you for the help in the defense of the city"

Byleth approached the old lady and quickly realized that she was the old lady who had seen selling sweets the last time they had been in Derdriu.

"I had the feeling that I would see both of you again. You have saved my city, the place where I was born and I have lived all my life. Take this as a token of gratitude." she said, offering them a box filled with handmade sweets.

"Thank you some much" Edelgard said lightly bowing before her.

"I should be the one thanking you. Besides, seeing a young couple like you always makes my day"

"We aren´t really…"

"Thank you for your kindness. I will make sure that everyone tastes your handmade sweets"

"I hope it is of your liking. Farewell, young one" the old lady said as they returned.

"You have done it again"

"What?"

"Pretending what we aren´t" Edelgard said toying with her hair.

"Does it bother you?"

"Are you ok with pretending something like that?"

"I do"

Edelgard suddenly stopped and looked at him, her face starting to get red.

"You really are unique, my Teacher. I´m glad that Dorothea isn´t here"

"What do you mean?"

"N-nothing! The rest had already arrived. We shouldn´t make them wait"

Like that they left to their next objective, surrounded by the gratitude of the inhabitants of the city.


	38. Rumored nuptials

**11/10**

"This place is strange" Byleth thought as they rode through the Valley of Torment. The place appeared to be an ancient battlefield, completely destroyed. Trees long ago dead were the only witnesses of what had happened there, but unfortunately there was no way to know the truth, yet the lava and the scorched terrain made him think about a catastrophe of cataclysmic levels.

"The more we look into this guy the more I´m certain he is a monster. I think we have everything we need to know to call off your wedding."

"You were right; we should be leaving this place as soon as possible."

"Why are you leaving so early?" asked an unknown voice.

The moment they looked around a group of rogues appeared in different places, surrounding them.

"Hand over the girl and we will let all of you go"

"Surely you can´t mean me. Wait…did he send them?"

"I told you he was a rotten apple. He intends to kill all of us just for his own benefit. We can´t let them take my precious Ingrid"

"They have chosen a bad day to do something like this" his father smiled looking at him. "They will know what happens when they mess with the Blade Breaker and the Ashen Demon"

"They are dumb enough to come to attack our group; I guess that we will have to get rid of all of them" Shamir said preparing her bow.

"Make a circle around our perimeter" he ordered. "Those who can fly, back us from the heights"

"Said and done Teach"

The first wave of enemies arrived to them. Fighting alongside his father on the ground his first adversary was a warrior wielding a heavy axe. The attacks from the warrior were strong, but they lacked precision and he was shortly after beheaded after he missed a critical hit. His father was doing fine next to him. His lance already covered in the blood of the enemies he had crushed.

"Why do I have to get dirty again? This is not the place you should be bringing a lady like me Professor" complained Hilda as she smashed one of the enemies to the ground.

"If we come through this I will give you an accessory in exchange" He knew that Hilda was fond of accessories and she even made her own.

"That´s a talk I like more, Professor"

"At this rate you will have to give us all something in exchange." Linhardt said as he casted healing spells. "This place is too hot, I´m getting sleepy"

"It´s not time to take a nap, Linhardt, even if I want to take one too" Flayn said next to him.

"Oh Goddess please forgive what we are doing" Marianne said in a whispering voice as she casted her own spells against the enemy units.

Their flying units were doing well too. Ingrid and Edelgard were using their Pegasi in a hit and run strategy and Claude was using his bow against the enemy archers that tried to approach them. Petra and her new mount were causing havoc across the enemy lines, her wyvern a formidable foe against the thieves and mercenaries fighting against them. After the last fights they had to endure this one appeared to be easier than expected.

"They are too weak!" shouted Caspar as he punched another enemy on its face with his battling gauntlets. The enemy appeared to be running away as they crushed their frontline.

"This is too easy" he thought.

"Ambush!" shouted Leonie.

The moment he turned around he saw a group of several warriors attacking the group from behind. Attacking them from behind, their archers didn´t have a chance. Shamir was able to counterattack with her lance, but it was too late for Bernadetta and Ignatz.

"No Ignatz, Bernadetta!" he shouted as he used the power Sothis to revert the outcome of the attack.

"Ambush!" he shouted as he ran to the position of their archers, counterattacking the hiding enemies alongside Raphael and the mages.

"Be careful around here. There might be more ambushes nearby"

They slowly advanced their way through the enemy lines. They had to face more ambushes, but he didn´t need to use divine pulse to avoid fatal outcomes.

"That must be the fancy noble we were searching about" said his father looking to a scarred hill a few meters from him.

"We must catch him. Leave it to me" he said as he started approaching him.

Noticing the advance of their group the enemy mercenaries and thieves prepared to make a last stand against them.

"All the gold you can imagine if you can kill them! Show no hesitation!" shouted the rich man.

"Killing for a contract is something I can understand, but doing it for kidnapping someone is disgusting" Shamir said as she prepared another arrow.

"I will never let them my dear Ingrid. It´s time to electrify this place" Dorothea said as she casted Thoron.

They were advancing when he noticed a group of barrels falling on them.

"Explos…!" He couldn´t end what he was saying as the explosion of the barrels surrounded them. Byleth was trying to get up when one pair of hands grabbed him.

"Are you ok son?" asked his father, slightly coughing due to the smoke.

"I´ve seen better days" he looked around to check the rest of the students. Some of them were injured, but fortunately there were no casualties among them.

"Cast healing spells. We can´t back down!"

The enemy was preparing more barrels on the hill. They still were too far away to reach them.

"Lysithea! Warp me there"

"Understood Professor" she said. A few seconds later she was engulfed in a purple cloud, appearing in front of the enemy.

"What the hell?"

Casting a fire spell he destroyed the barrels prepared for them. The blast of the explosion sent him to the ground, but their enemies weren´t that lucky as most of them died from the range of the explosion.

Taking care of the remaining enemies he started to approach the rich man.

"How did you do that?"

"There are more things you should be worry about than asking such questions. Are you ready to die?" He said as he approached him with his sword.

"Wait, wait! Don´t kill me. I´m rich. I have a lot of money. I could give you all kind of imaginable luxury for the rest of your life. Just consider it"

"You were trying to kill us all and now you are trying to buy me. I don´t have dealings with people like you"

The rest of the students were starting to arrive to the hill, but he was more focused on the disgusting man in front of him.

"A blood debt should be repaid in blood." Hubert chuckled as he saw the rich man panicking in front of him.

"Mercy!"

"You will find mercy after your death" Byleth said as he raised his sword.

"Wait!" Ingrid shouted as she landed besides him.

"He had tried to kill us all and we have discovered that his wealth is based on the suffering and death of innocents. Wouldn´t you want to kill him?"

"He is an evil and corrupted man, that´s for sure. Killing him would be the easy option. He must pay with the rest of his life for all the suffering he has committed." She then looked to the rich man on the ground. "You will have to accept our conditions if you want to leave this place alive"

"I will comply, please keep that sword away from me!"

"First of all the wedding plan will be called off."

"Of course"

"Half of your money will be sent to House Galatea, the rest to the Church and the Alliance."

"Then I will be left with nothing!"

"You will be left with your head on your shoulders. I consider it a fair trade"

"Spoken like a true merchant. You could be a worthy member of the Alliance, Ingrid" Claude said laughing.

"Do we have any papers to make sure he complies?"

"I´m always prepare for such occasions" Lorenz said offering her a white paper.

The merchant was at first reluctant to sign up the papers, but he was quickly convinced when Byleth´s sword dangerously approached his neck. They also took away the money he had and the expensive weapons he was carrying.

"Do you think he will comply?" Ingrid asked as they saw him leaving in a pathetic state.

"I don´t think so, but if we don´t receive any funding I will make sure that Judith pays him a visit" Claude said with a mischievous smile. "I didn´t expect to have such a profitable battle, although we should leave this place. It is too hot"

"Better hot than cold, but I agree" Petra said.

"I want to tell my father about this. If you don´t mind we could make our return through the Holy Kingdom"

"No problem, let´s leave this valley already" He said as they continue their march.

…..

Sun was starting to hide behind the clouds as they left the boundaries of the valley. They were welcomed with a chilly breeze, some areas around them covered in snow. The harsh contrast of temperatures was making most of the students shiver.

"It appears than winter has come to the Holy Kingdom" Claude observed.

"This is nothing compared with what is going to come. If you stay here for a few more weeks you will understand"

"No planning to be here for that long, Ingrid. Teach you don´t seem to be affected by it"

"I´ve seen worse things"

"You are right son. Do you remember that time when we were fighting against those savages from Sreng?"

"It was so cold that we crossed the frozen sea to attack the enemy lines from behind"

"Remember me not to go with you to such a place Teach, I prefer warmer places"

"Me too! Brigid is warmth and it is full of life. This place seems so empty"

"I guess I could give it a little visit when I have some time to spare"

"Of course!" she said with a genuine smile.

"If we continue at this rate we will be arriving to the castle of my father before the sun sets."

"Hurry up everyone. A warmth bed is waiting for us"

After a while the castle appeared in front of them. It was a sturdy fortification, but Byleth knew from his last visit that the inner rooms needed to be repaired in some areas. "Perhaps with the money obtained from this battle they can used it to improve the situation of the castle"

Ingrid flew ahead of them to tell his father about their arrival. When they finally arrived Ingrid´s father was waiting for them, although the servants were nowhere to be seen.

"Welcome once again to my home. I see that we have a lot of new faces" he said observing all of them. My daughter has told me about the terrifying events you had to endure. You have my everlasting gratitude. Feel yourselves at home. My servants will guide all of you to your respective rooms. If you excuse me I want to discuss this matter with my daughter alone" he said as he left accompanied by Ingrid.

"We finally made it" Linhardt said. "I won´t be doing anything for this month, Professor. I need to rest for a few weeks."

"I´m hungry. I can´t wait to eat something" Raphael said as he took off his heavy armor.

"This place will surely be terrifying at night" Alois said looking the towers around him.

"You may be able to see a ghost walking around you"

"That´s not funny Shamir. We don´t know what you can attract saying those words"

"A man of the Church and afraid of ghosts? You could make a joke about it" Shamir said, covering her mouth as she laughed.

"Ghosts don´t exist. Only children believe in things like that" Lysithea said in a confident tone, although she screamed when Claude touched her cheeks with his hands covered in snow.

"Sorry I just couldn´t avoid it" he said laughing as he was chased by her around the courtyard.

"They might be warriors outside the monastery, but they are just a bunch of kids" Jeralt said laughing watching the scene unfolding in from of them. When he realized he was smiling he rubbed his hair. "I think I understand now why you have changed so much since you started working at the monastery. We will make sure that they stay unharmed."

"I will protect them with everything I have"

"I couldn´t expect less" he smiled. "We should enter. We don´t want them to catch a cold"

….

"The food might be modest, but it will keep all of you warmth. Winter is coming and in a few weeks we will know the really meaning of cold"

"I hope I will be sitting next to the fireplace at the monastery when that happens" Claude commented in front of him as he ate a piece of meat.

"You don´t have to worry about that. I don´t think we will have snow for the next few days, although only the Goddess really knows about the future" he then looked at Byleth. "The money we have obtained from the merchant will certainly help us during these harsh times, especially when the rest of it arrives. You have my gratitude for your help"

"I´m happy to have lent a hand"

The dinner continued with nothing remarkable to say, except when Alois and Jeralt started to compete to see which one of them was more capable of enduring drinking schnapps. The final result was that they had to carry Alois to their chambers, since he was incapable of moving by its own.

He was about to leave when Ingrid approached him

"Professor, may I have a moment to speak with you? You can come too Dorothea"

"Of course"

"I must thank you for assisting me in this trip. If it weren´t for all of you I can only shiver at the thought of being married to such man"

"Thanks Goddess. I´m so glad it all worked out" Dorothea said with a relieved smile. "I told you I would do everything to protect you, my dear Ingrid."

"My father has also told me to keep well protected the relic of my family" she said as she showed them a lance. "Its name is Lúin, one of the Hero´s Relic. This weapon has been passed down for generations within my family, but it´s been kept hidden for years since my father and siblings were born crestless. I guess it will have a better use with me, but you are free to use it if you ever need to, since you have my gratitude for helping me"

"I will consider it"

"Don´t worry Ingrid we were just happy to help you. I couldn´t forgive giving away my Ingrid to someone else, especially a corrupted man like him."

"Have I just turned into your property?" Ingrid asked a bit embarrassed. "I have something for you too, I don´t know if you have one of these, but I thought you would like it" she said, showing her a ring.

"Is this a proposal?" he asked, looking at the ring. He didn´t know that Ingrid was feeling forwards Dorothea in that way, but he was happy if they were happy too. "I wish you a life full of happiness"

"Oh my, Ingrid! I´m so happy! I will gladly be your spouse from now on. I will treasure you until my last breath on this world" said a seemingly excited Dorothea.

"Wait, wait! This is just a misunderstanding" Ingrid said blushing. "I was just searching for something to give you among my belongings when I came across with this ring. It´s an enchanted ring that heals a bit its wielder. It won´t be of too much help against life threatening injuries, but it is better than nothing"

"I got my hope too up then" she sighed. "You are too cruel Ingrid, you shouldn´t do something like that to a poor girl like me"

"I said nothing though…Anyway if you want to use it, feel free to keep it. I just wanted to thank you. Good night" she said as she left them alone.

"I can really feel magic within it, although it isn´t very powerful" Dorothea commented as she looked at him. "Do you want to use it, Professor? I don´t really mind. I´m just happy with the detail that Ingrid had just had with me"

He touched the ring. He felt a faint energy, probably related to the healing magic within it. "It won´t do too much, but I can find it a good use"

"Have you thought about someone in particular? You could give it to…"

"I was thinking about Caspar. He is usually in the front line and he may need it more than anyone else"

"Professor, that would be a waste of such a beautiful ring." Dorothea complained. "Why are you so interested in battling?"

"I just want to protect all of you"

"The answer I expected from you. I guess that I will have to give my best the next days"

"What do you mean?"

"If I told you it wouldn´t be a surprise anymore" Dorothea said with a teasing smile. "Good night, Professor. I hope you sleep well"

"You too Dorothea"

"What are you going to do now?" asked Sothis inside his head after Dorothea had left.

"I have nothing much to do. I guess I could go on a walk since I´m not tired yet. It´s been a while since the last time you spoke to me"

"That´s your fault. Every time you abused your powers I grow extremely tired. You are a powerful warrior, but you shouldn´t abuse your power"

"I know. I had no other choice that time."

"I know that you worry about them, but you must understand that one day you may not be able to save them all. You must realize that my power is limited."

"I hope that day never comes" The mere thought of losing one of his dear students was depressing.

"By the way, that place you were before. I felt a strange energy coming from it"

"Do you mean the valley of torment?" It was definitely a strange place. The area was completely destroyed yet the surrounding areas appeared to be intact. "As far as I know it has always been like that"

"Isn´t that quite strange? I don´t think it originated from natural causes. No, there must be something more behind it. I wonder what or who originated that landscape"

"The ire of the Goddess?"

"Have you just turned into a pious man? I don´t really know about it. It could the Goddess of the Church, a giant beast or a powerful magician. The only thing I know that whatever caused it must have been really powerful"

Fódlan was full of areas with inexplicable elements, but he was confident that the valley of torment was at the top of that list.

"We can only make hypothesis about it"

"I know, I was just thinking aloud. I will take a nap. You should be resting soon"

"Good night Sothis"

…..

"What are you doing here at this time of night Monica? You should be staying in your room. Don´t be a nuisance" Hubert had been controlling her during their expeditions, but he was already exhausted so she had no other option than to control her for now.

"You should congratulate me Edel. I didn´t kill anyone. You should be happy about it"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I don´t want you to use my name in such a casual manner?" she said in an exasperated tone. It was true that Kronya didn´t hurt any of the students, but it was evident that it wasn´t out of her good will. "Your kind has been recently silent. What are you planning to do?"

"Why should I tell you? Friends should trust each other without making such questions. Some people would consider that we are enemies by the way you are talking to me"

"Don´t imply things where there is nothing. We are just cooperating for the time being." She suspected that Kronya didn´t really know about the real plans of Solon and Thales, at least she wouldn´t trust her plans to a creature with such sadistic tendencies.

"I must admit that I was surprised when your Professor came to save me. Such efforts for someone like me, I´m moved beyond words" Kronya said touching her face with her hands in a passionate manner. "And when I saw him covered in blood, surrounded with all those corpses… I did my best not to lick the blood from his face. Oh, I think I´m falling for him" she said laughing maniacally.

"Disgusting, don´t ever dare to lay your hands on him" she said. "How can they use a creature like this for their objectives? Kronya is a danger to everyone around us" she thought.

"Why are you so defensive about him? Are you jealous? I´m a generous being, we could share it. I´m only interested in the taste of his blood. Thinking about it I´m just getting aroused"

"Keep quiet, someone is coming" Edelgard said as she heard the sound of footsteps coming closer.

"Good evening Edelgard, Monica" greeted them her Professor. "What are you doing at this time of night?"

"That´s something I could ask you too" Monica said with a mild smile. "You sustained heavy injuries when you fight against those giant wolves. You should take some rest. Besides, you saved me" Monica said with a singing voice that made Edelgard shiver.

"I did what I had to do to save all of you. I didn´t expect you to be so skillful taking down enemies"

"I told you. I may look frail, but I have some experience with weapons. I could find some time to practice with you alone…" Monica said in a teasing tone, but her eyes were cold as ice.

"I´m afraid I cannot allow you doing that, Monica. As you know the Professor is already busy with all kind of individual practices so you will have to wait, don´t you think Professor?" she said looking at him.

"You are right. This month is going to be difficult, but we can find some time later"

"Don´t worry I can wait. I will be going for now. Good night Edel, Professor" she said with a gentle smile as she left them alone.

"That creature really gets on my nerves" she thought, as she saw her leaving.

"Is there something bothering you, Edelgard? You look tired"

"Don´t worry my Teacher. Guiding Monica can be exhausting at times."

"I don´t think we will be having more expeditions for this month so you will be able to rest more, but don´t push yourself too hard"

"That´s the same thing I could say about you, my Teacher" she smiled to him. "You shouldn´t sacrifice your own health for the sake of us"

"It is something I´m willing to do if I can save any of you. But you are right. I will only use it as a last resort. Thank you for worrying about me" he said as he rubbed her hair.

"You really look like your father when you do this to me" she said with a faint smile. At first she was embarrassed every time he did that to her, but she had got used to it. In fact she was glad that she was in the receiving end of his affection.

"He always did this to me as a symbol of his love for me. I guess that I´m doing the same" Byleth said smiling. "I hope you can rest well Edelgard" he said as he prepared to leave.

"My Teacher"

"Yes, Edelgard?"

"Would you like to take a walk with me?"

"It is always a pleasure" he said as he offered her his arm.

Accepting his invitation they left together, their footsteps were covered by the howling wind blowing outside the castle. She knew that when she returned to the monastery she would have to face the likes of Solon and the others again, but for the time being she would just enjoy the remaining time she was granted.


	39. A pleasant surprise

**11/17 Red wolf moon**

The wind was howling outside the walls of the monastery, but his students were completely silent, doing their certifications exams. Seteth had ordered to do most certification exams before the ending of the month, since he suspected that most students would neglect their studies in the coming month. The main hall of the monastery had turned into an examination room just for this event, the students of the three houses taking the same exam.

Taking a look to the questions of the exam he was sure that his students wouldn´t have any problems. Since he didn´t have too much to do he checked every student to make sure that they weren´t cheating.

It was interesting to see how different the students reacted to the exam in front of them. Edelgard and Dimitri were focused on the paper in front of them while Claude was yawning and lazily writing the answers of his exam. When he realized he was watching him he faintly smiled to him. Linhardt appeared to be half sleeping and Lysithea had finished writing for a while, yet she hasn´t handed over her exam yet. The ones that appeared to have more problems were Caspar and Raphael. Caspar was furiously scratching his head as if doing that could help him and Raphael was touching his stomach as if the exam had made him hungry.

"This is so boring" Sothis said inside his head.

"It´s an exam. It isn´t supposed to be funny"

"Well, it is getting chilly out there so I guess that it is better to stay here"

After a few minutes had passed the bells of the cathedral rang, marking the end of the exam.

"Time is over, come here and hand over the exams"

One by one the students approached him. The first one to hand him the exam was Edelgard, closely followed by Lysithea.

"How was it?"

"I didn´t have any problems thanks to your guiding" Edelgard smiled.

"It was easy, but that´s because I study very hard" Lysithea said. "Do you want to eat some sweets with me, Edelgard?"

"Of course Lysithea"

Seeing the two of them getting along made him smile.

"Professor, please don´t get mad at me" Caspar said as he handed his exam. "Theory exams aren´t my thing"

"You have to train for that too. Consider it another fight"

"A fight? That is something I can really understand. Thank you Professor! I will keep that in mind"

With the exams of all of his students he returned to the Professor´s room. Hanneman and Manuela were already there, doing the paperwork that Seteth had ordered them to make.

"Thank you for taking care of all of the students, Byleth" Manuela greeted him with a smile. "I hope that the students behaved properly with you during the exam"

"I didn´t have any problem. Here are the exams of the Golden Deer students and here the Blue Lions"

"Thank you Byleth. Seteth had been merciless with us, sending us this amount of paperwork" she sighed. "But I can understand him. Most students aren´t going to be focused on their studies with the White Heron Cup and the ball."

"Is it that important?"

"Of course it is, Byleth! As snow falls the students share a night together dancing and exchanging promises. Some couples will definitely form next month. I may be one of the lucky ones. You shoul…"

She was interrupted by the sound of a small laughter.

"Hanneman, do you think I´m saying something funny?" Manuela said with a cold smile.

"Nothing too strange. It´s just the same talk every single year"

"I´ve just been unlucky, but I don´t expect understanding from someone who uses such a ridicule monocle"

"Ridiculous monocle? I use it for investigation purposes, not because it looks good on me, not like others with their outfits"

"You can say whatever you want; it still looks ridiculous on you"

"Keep calm, both of you"

"Don´t worry Byleth, even if we usually argue like this it doesn´t mean that we are on bad terms" Manuela said with a smile. "As I was saying next month will be an important date for most students and some love stories may be born out of it. Aren´t you interested in experiencing something like that?"

Byleth remained silent for a moment. He knew that he had feelings for Edelgard, but he wasn´t sure what to do about them. When he talked with his father he had made the decision to do nothing, yet a part of him was in disagreement with it, but even if he wanted to do something he was clueless about it.

"How do you feel when you are in love with someone?" he asked.

The moment the question left his lips Hanneman and Manuela suddenly froze.

"Are you ill?" asked Manuela checking his temperature.

"It may be a side-effect of his crest. I´ve never heard something like that in the books I´ve consulted, but since the Crest of flames is surrounded by endless mysteries it may be one of its unknown effects" Hanneman said as he approached him.

"I´m fine, I was just curious about it"

"I´ve never expected to hear those words coming from you, Byleth. In my case I can´t stop thinking about that person and I make all kind of plans to spend time with them, although until now my plans had been a failure" she sighed. "Your heart beats faster whatever they come nearby. Some people blush and they have problem to concentrate when the person that stole their heart is around them. Are you feeling like that for someone?"

Byleth thought about Manuela´s response. Apart from the aching of his heart he didn´t have any physical symptoms that showed he was infatuated by her.

"If you want to make sure you could think about that person right now"

He closed his eyes and thought about her. Evoking her face he felt a slight aching in his heart, but he didn´t feel an increased heartbeat.

"I don´t feel nothing that you said Manuela"

"I expected that" Hanneman laughed. "You would have really surprised me if you…"

"Keep silent Hanneman. Even if you are already hopeless I still have hope that our handsome Byleth can be in love with someone. Let´s try a different approach, how can you describe the feelings you have for that person?"

"I guess that I don´t want her to suffer and I wish she could be happy"

"That´s pretty vague Byleth" Manuela sighed. "In that case you could say that you love all the students and that it´s not wrong, but it´s not the kind of love I was referring to"

"I want them to be happy too, but it is a bit different with her. That´s the only thing I can say. I´m sorry Manuela"

"No need to be sorry about it Byleth. I didn´t expect to have such conversation with you. Could you tell me the name of the person of your affection?"

"I´m sorry, but I can´t tell you" he said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Too shy to answer? How cute! The fact that you can feel embarrassed about something like this gives me hope. I will keep it a secret between us. Hanneman, be silent about it too"

"Of course I will. I wouldn´t want to make Byleth feel uncomfortable. Besides, I have the feeling that this could be related to your legendary crest. How interesting" he said looking at him with a renewed interest.

"I would like to continue the chattering, but we don´t know when Seteth is going to appear so we should continue working"

"You are right"

Seteth appeared after half an hour accompanied by Flayn. His usual serious gaze was usually more relaxed when he was accompanied by her.

"I see that everyone is doing their job. Keep it going. With the coming of next month I wanted to be prepared in advance to avoid experiencing the problems we had to face years ago"

"Since I´m a student now, will you let me dance, dear brother?" Flayn asked with a charming smile.

"I thought you were happy dancing just with me the previous years"

"But this year is so different. Besides, since I´m a student I don´t find it that strange, dear brother. Don´t you think the same Professor?" she said looking at him.

Seteth was also looking at him, although his expression was the opposite of Flayn´s.

"I will make sure she is safe, but I think she could give it a try it too"

"Be true to your word Professor. Return to your job. I won´t be disturbing any of you any longer. Come with me Flayn"

They remained silent until they couldn´t hear Seteth´s footsteps anymore.

"Seteth is really protective about her sister. Apart from the color of the hair they are completely different."

"Both of you are completely different too"

"I guess that you are right Byleth. Forgive me Manuela, sometimes I´m too harsh on you"

"Don´t worry Hanneman I was just in a bad mood. We should finish this before the day ends. I don´t want to disappoint our dear Seteth"

….

The sun was starting to set as Byleth left the Professor´s room behind him. Since Hanneman and Manuela were still busy with the paperwork from Seteth he had offered to correct the exams of their students but he was already regretting that decision looking at the amount of exams he had to correct.

"I guess I will have to sacrifice some time of sleep" he thought as he walked through the courtyard, heading to his room.

"What are you doing my Teacher?" asked a voice he had grown fond of. When he looked behind him, he saw Edelgard, wearing her usual uniform and a book in one hand.

"Good evening Edelgard. Since Manuela and Hanneman are both busy I offered myself to help them correcting the exams of their houses. I was heading to my room to correct them, and you?"

"I´ve just finished dinner. If you want to I could accompany you since I have nothing more to do."

"I don´t mind, but I don´t think it´s going to be very interesting"

"Don´t worry, I can use this book to keep myself entertained" she said with a gentle smile.

With no reason to oppose her they headed together to his room. Opening the door he let her enter first.

"Your room is really tidy. You really take care of your surroundings. I´ve had that feeling since I saw your tent in Gronder"

"If I don´t keep things tidy it is difficult to find things when I need them. Your room appeared to be tidy too. I´m sorry I don´t have a free chair for you. Feel free to sit on my bed"

"Oh, thank you. I hope I don´t disturb you" Edelgard said, a bit blushed.

Sitting on his chair Byleth started to correct the exams of the students from the different houses while Edelgard read in silence behind him. He started correcting the exams from the Golden Deer students. He was impressed by the depth of analysis of Lysithea´s answers. "She has done a great job" he thought. Claude´s exam was also perfect, although his justifications were more innovative. "He thinks like a real strategist". The student that made him sigh was Raphael.

"Question 9: You are the commander. You have to face your enemies, which have the control of a hill. You have forests to your right and a river to your left and in front of you a bridge, but it is exposed to the attacks from the hill. What do you do to achieve victory?

Answer: Use my muscles"

"Technically he isn´t wrong, since you have to fight to win, right?" said Sothis inside his head.

"In a broad sense yes, but I think I shouldn´t consider this as a correct answer"

"You gave half a point to that blue haired student of your House when he answered "the Professor will think about something" though. Isn´t that favoritism?"

"You are right about that" he thought. In the end he decided to let them pass, but he planned to have a serious conversation with both of them. They had proofed him that they were capable fighters, but there was no use about it if they didn´t have a minimum of strategy preparation since most of them would have to handle positions of responsibility. It took him a couple of hours to correct all the exams. When he finished everything he felt his eyes were exhausted.

"I´m sorry Edelgard. I hope it wasn´t too boring for you" he said as he looked behind him. Edelgard was sleeping, her hair hiding her face.

"She must be really tired if she is sleeping like this. It must be because of Monica" he thought. Even though more than a month had already passed since Monica joined them she was glued to her almost every day, although sometimes he could see her accompanied by Hubert.

Looking at her he wondered what he should do with her. He could hear the wind furiously blowing outside and he thought it was unadvisable to carry her outside. He didn´t want to disturb her sleep either.

Gently taking hold of her body he prepared his bed for her. Placing her body in her bed, he carefully put the bed sheets on her.

"Where are you going to sleep?"

"On the floor"

"Why? You shared your own cloak back in that cave."

"That was different. We were on an expedition towards Conand´s Tower and there was a raging storm outside the cave. I feel it would be inappropriate doing something like that now." He said as he imagined Seteth´s reaction.

"Ok, but if you don´t rest enough because of this don´t complain. I will go to sleep too. Good night Byleth"

"Good night Sothis, rest well" he said as he lay down on the floor. It didn´t take too much time until he fell asleep.

…

"Please stop! Let them live!"

He opened his eyes to the sound of Edelgard´s scream. Everything was completely dark yet. "She is having those nightmares again" he thought, as he approached her.

Edelgard was mumbling things in dreams. Looking at her face he knew she was suffering the same nightmares that had tormented her for most of her life. Taking off one of her gloves he started caressing the area, trying to comfort her the best he could. After a short while the mumbling stopped and the suffering on her face started to disappear until she started to breath normally. He remained for a while holding her hand until he made sure she didn´t have any more nightmares.

"Even when she sleeps she can´t rest" he thought, feeling sadness about it. "I can´t do nothing about your past, but I promise that I will do my best to protect you from now on. I won´t let you suffer anymore" he silently promised as he saw her sleeping face. Lying on the ground again he tried to sleep again, although it took more time than expected since he was thinking about her.

….

**11/18**

It was still dark when she opened her eyes. "I´ve had that dream again, although it felt different from other occasions. I wonder why" she thought as she searched for her armored bear stuffy, but she didn´t find it. "It may have fallen next to the bed" she thought as she leaned over the bed to pick it up, but what she touched was completely different. It was strangely silky and warm. When she approached her face to the left side of the bed she suddenly froze as she saw him.

"M-My Teacher. Am I still dreaming?" she thought until she recalled the events of last night. "I fell asleep reading that book". She had been especially busy last days due to Monica, but she never expected that she could have fallen asleep so easily.

"He had been sleeping on the floor for me" she thought as she saw him sleeping. If when she opened her eyes she had seen him next to her… The mere thought made her heart beat faster than ever before. Embarrassed by the thoughts she was having she burrowed her face into the pillow. "It smells like him" she thought. No matter what she did her inner feelings were menacing to overwhelm her. She tried to close her eyes and think nothing, but every time she tried his face keep appearing inside her mind. "I understand now why Dorothea saw through me. Regarding him I´ve turned into a person easy to read". A part of her was urging her to leave the place, but another wanted to stay a bit longer. "Only for this time" she thought as she decided to stay there for the remaining time.

….

Byleth opened his eyes the moment the first rays of sun pierced through the darkness of the room. Slowly getting up he looked to the bed to his side. Edelgard was completely covered by his bed sheets, her hair the only thing he could see.

"She may be sleeping yet" he thought. "I hope she can rest without nightmares for a while" he said to himself as he cherished the bed sheets that covered her. The moment he did it she suddenly moved and looked at him, her face extremely red.

"Good morning Edelgard" he said with a faint smile. "I hope that my bed was comfortable enough to you"

"It was" she said avoiding his eyes. "I´m sorry to abuse your confidence like that"

"I have no problem. I know that you have been pushing yourself too hard. You should have chosen to rest since our arrival from the last expeditions, but I suppose that Monica´s attention can be quite demanding. If you don´t mind I will take care of her for the rest of the month"

"Don´t worry, my Teacher. I´m sure you have your own responsibilities. It´s my wish to not disturb you with unnecessary problems"

"If you say so. Do you want to come with me to have some breakfast?"

"If my presence doesn´t disturb you I will gladly accompany you" she said toying with her hair.

Byleth opened the door as Edelgard started putting her boots. The moment he opened the door he saw Hubert standing a few meters away from it.

"Good morning Professor, have you seen Lady Edelgard?"

Byleth looked behind him, by the look in Edelgard´s eyes he knew she didn´t want him to tell the truth.

"No. I´ve just woken up. I was about to go to the canteen" he said as he closed the door behind him, approaching him.

"The fact that you haven´t seen her is relieving at least"

"What do you mean?"

"You are a difficult person to read Professor. As you know my duty is to protect Lady Edelgard at all costs and that also means protecting her from interactions that could be considered problematic. Lady Edelgard has certainly taken interest in a difficult one this time"

"Why do you distrust me Hubert?"

"The answer requires me to explain you the complex internal politics of the Empire. Are you familiar with Volkhard von Arundel? He is Lady Edelgard´s uncle, current Empire´s regent. He took Lady Edelgard into exile to the Kingdom of Faerghus when the nobles started organizing against the Emperor Ionius IX, Lady Edelgard´s father. However, after a time he returned and seized power from him, rendering him completely impotent. Words cannot possibly explain the depth of her sadness at his betrayal." He said as he looked at him into the eyes. "You remember me of Lord Arundel. When I look at you I have the feeling that there is something completely different inside you. Something with desires very different from your own."

"This boy is sharp" commented Sothis inside his head. "I´m impressed seeing someone with such deductive powers.

"You are wrong, Hubert. I don´t plan to betray her. I wish her no harm"

"Words have no value in the world we live in, only the things we do matter. I will continue my search for Lady Edelgard and I will keep an eye on you" he said as he left him behind.

"She was betrayed even by his own uncle" he thought, saddened by the mere thought of it as he opened the door of his room again. Looking at her, he knew she had overheard their conversation.

"I apologize for Hubert´s behavior. He is right about the betrayals that I had to endure, but that doesn´t mean it is right to compare him to you"

"Don´t worry Edelgard. I´m not offended by his words. I know he worries about you greatly. Let´s go and have breakfast; you can talk with him later"

As they ate their breakfast Byleth kept thinking about Hubert´s words. "She has suffered enough, I hope she doesn´t have to suffer anymore"

…..

**11/19**

Edelgard opened her eyes as the first rays of the sun appeared.

"Today is the day" she thought "I hope he likes it" she said to herself as she took a pendant with an eagle in the center of it and carefully put it in her pocket. As she opened the door she saw a small paper, picking it she realized it was a letter.

"Lady Edelgard, I wish to speak with you about an important matter. Can you please go to the abandoned class close to the stables?"

"An important matter? I guess he wants to tell me something about the imperial succession"

After what had happened yesterday she didn´t want to make him wait so she decided she would first talk with him. As she left, she didn´t realize that a girl wearing a particular hat was smiling as she headed to the aforementioned classroom.

…

"My Teacher, I wish to speak you alone. Could you please meet with me in the abandoned classroom next to the stables?" he read as he picked a note that was left in front of his door.

"I guess she wants to talk about yesterday" he thought. After talking with Hubert they have remained mostly silent, but he didn´t want to pressure her to tell him the matters that were worrying her. Without hesitation he headed to the stables.

…

She opened the door. The place was strangely dark.

"Where are you?" she asked

"I´m here" said a voice behind her.

She was surprised by his proximity, but she was even more surprised to see her Professor there.

"My Teacher, what are you doing here?"

"You said you wanted to talk with me about something" he said as he showed him a note.

When she read the content of the note she realized that she had been tricked by a particular someone.

"My Teacher, I´m afraid this is a misunderstanding we should…" she couldn´t end what she was saying as the door closed behind them.

"Edie, take care of the Professor for a few hours. I still need to make some things for today!"

"Dorothea! What is the meaning of this?!" she said as she tried to open the door, but it was tightly closed. Feeling an electrifying sensation crossing her body she realized that she had enchanted the door.

"Don´t you want to spend time with me Edelgard?"

"It´s not that my Teacher, it´s just…" her words were lost again when she saw him sitting behind a table with a tea set that appeared prepared for the occasion.

"I told her to do nothing" she thought as she realized that Dorothea had prepared a date with the two of them.

"Is something disturbing you Edelgard?"

"No, sorry. I was just lost in thought" she said as she sat in front of him. The darkness of the room made it look as if night was already upon them.

"This place is too dark" her Teacher said as he casted a small fire enchantment to light the couple of candles in the middle of the table, making the ambient even more intimate.

"Edelgard, you are too silent"

"S-Sorry my Teacher" she said a bit flustered.

"I want you to rest for a bit, at least for today"

"You are right" she then deeply breathed before continuing. "Happy birthday, my Teacher. I hope that this day is full of happiness."

"It already is, since I´m with you" he said as he smiled to her with the widest smile she had seen from him.

"I´ve brought this for you" she said, avoiding his gaze. "I hope that it´s of your liking" she said as she handed him the pendant she had been hiding until now.

"Edelgard, thank you" he said, gently rubbing her hair. "I will treasure this present for the rest of my life. Could you put it on me?"

Her heart jumped of happiness the moment she heard his words. Approaching him from behind, she carefully placed the pendant around his neck, their faces almost touching.

"Does it look good on me?"

"Too close!" she thought as she realized the close they were, his breath mixing with hers, yet she couldn´t move, as if she was enchanted by his eyes, her lips unwittingly slightly open.

"It looks good on you" she finally said, her voice a mere whisper.

"I´m glad to hear that. You are the first one to congratulate me for my birthday today. I´m happy you were the one to do it" he said, lightly embracing her, the moment he did she could feel how the beatings of her heart grew faster.

"Why?" the sound of her heartbeats inside her head.

"Because you are special to me" he said with a fond smile.

The moment she heard his honest words a storm of emotions exploded inside her.

"You are special to me too, Byleth."

"I like it when you say my name. We should drink the tea before it gets too cold"

"You are right"

As she sipped her cup of tea she realized Dorothea had chosen her favorite one; Bergamot tea.

"I guess that I should thank her, after all" she thought as she talked with him. "I will treasure this moment for the rest of my life"

They spent their time chatting, a time that was just for the two of them.

…

"Sorry for making you wait Professor!" Dorothea apologized opening the door. "I was busy preparing something for you. Happy birthday!"

"No problem Dorothea. I was good accompanied" he said looking at Edelgard, who blushed a bit the moment she heard his words.

"Please accompany me to the canteen. I assure you, you will never forget this day"

They followed her to the canteen, the moment she opened the doors he could heard the voices of all his students.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY BYLETH!"

The students of the three houses had gathered just for him. He could also see members of the Church like Shamir, Catherine and Alois. His father was sitting among his students with a broad smile on his face.

"Happy birthday son. I didn´t expect you to have such an amount of admirers" he laughed.

"Thank you everyone. Sincerely" he said, as happiness took hold of his body.

"What are we waiting for? Let´s celebrate!" shouted Caspar.

Sitting among his students he talked with all of them.

"Teach you are really smiling today" Claude said patting his back. "Seeing you like this makes me happy too"

"I wish you a day full of happiness. Seeing everyone together speaks volumes of the respect we have for you Professor" Dimitri said with a broad smile.

"Just respect? He is already our friend, right Teach?"

"Of course"

"I consider you a friend too Professor. I will never forget the many times you have aided us"

Their conversation was interrupted when Seteth entered the canteen accompanied by Flayn.

"Professor, my dear sister has asked me to do this for you" he said an unusual embarrassed Seteth handing him a handmade cake. "I hope it is of your liking"

"I told you Professor that you should taste my brother´s cuisine and I can´t find a better day than today"

"Thank you Seteth. I really appreciate it. Thank you Flayn"

"Professor, Seteth isn´t the only one that has prepared something for you" Annette said approaching him accompanied by Mercedes. "I told you that we will be preparing something for you"

"I made something too" Lysithea said as he handed him some handmade sweets.

"Thank you everyone, I really appreciate it. I will treasure this memory for the rest of my life"

"Byleth!" shouted Alois as he rushed to embrace him.

"You are growing sentimental son" Jeralt said rubbing his hair. "I´m sure she would be happy to see that side of you"

Seeing the smiling faces of his students, he couldn´t avoid feeling at ease. "I will protect all of them, not only because they are my students, but because they are my friends" he thought. The time he had spent with them would never abandon him for the rest of his life.

….

"Thank you Dorothea for planning this"

"Don´t worry Professor. I wanted to thank you for everything you have done to us until now. I´m sure that everyone had a good time. Specially a particular someone" she said as she looked at someone behind him.

It was already dark and most of the students had already returned, except the Black Eagles, although Monica was nowhere to be seen.

"It was a splendid plan Dorothea." Ferdinand said.

"No need to compliment me Ferdie, I did it for our dear Professor"

"My stomach is full. I need to punch someone to spend my energy"

"You are always looking for a fight Caspar" Linhardt yawned. "Since we had a big celebration we should rest tomorrow."

"You are free to rest, Linhardt"

"Really? You should have your birthdays more often"

"I didn´t feel stressed at all. It must be because it was your birthday. Thank you Professor"

"Oh Bernie, I´m glad that you felt like that" Dorothea said with a smile that made Bernadetta blush.

"In Brigid we believe that with each year you grow wiser. I hope you live long enough to turn into a sage"

"It surely was an eventful day" Hubert commented looking at him.

"I appreciate you were here too, Hubert"

"Tsk"

"Well I guess that with these the celebrations had ended"

"No Edie, we have to sing a final Happy birthday to our dear Professor"

"I guess it cannot be helped" Edelgard said a bit embarrassed.

Their voices weren´t coordinated at all, but he didn´t mind. Having them as students was an honor he didn´t regret to have.

…..

"The day has finally ended" he thought as he entered his bed. "Happy birthday Sothis"

"You did remember. I appreciate it. It seems that you had a good day"

"It certainly was. I will never forget this day"

"I´m happy to hear that, but now is time to rest." She said with a smile from her stone throne.

"Good night Sothis"

"Good night Byleth"

As he closed his eyes he recalled the events of that day. The smiles of everyone, the songs and conversations they had and the time he had spent with her. With these pleasant memories he entered the realm of dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that the birthday is in another date, but since at the beginning of the game you can freely choose it and I wanted their bonds to be deeper I decided to make it happen later.


	40. Those who sow darkness

**11/20 Red wolf moon**

"The Professor and Edel are getting along too well" Kronya said to him, her usual form revealed.

"Is the Flame Emperor planning to ally with him?" he asked. He was certain that the Professor was the result of the experimentation from their ancient enemy, yet he was unsure how to get rid of him without compromising their security.

"Most likely" Solon said. "She hates us, but she knows she will have to cooperate with us to achieve her own objectives. However, if she can convince the Fallen Star to join their cause…"

"We cannot allow something like that to happen"

"Shall I kill him then, Thales?"

"That would be a stupid act. Even if you were somehow able to kill him that doesn´t mean that you could destroy the Fallen Star. Don´t act unless being told so Kronya. As long as he is under the protection of the archbishop we can do nothing about him"

"In that case we should avoid at all costs that they join forces. We have to make sure that they kill each other or our plans will be doomed." Solon said.

Hearing his words he recalled the information he had been telling him all these months.

"The Professor and the Blade Breaker came from Remire if I am not mistaken. If your information is correct they appeared to be too fond of the village"

"You are right about that Thales"

"In that case we can use that on our benefit. I think we have a place to develop our experiment"

"The Remire village would certainly be an interesting place to test the capabilities of the samples we have obtained."

"The Remire village? Isn´t that place extremely close to the monastery? The Church will certainly come to stop us" Kronya said.

"That´s our purpose, Kronya, but since you are too thick I will explain it to you. We want to avoid that the Fallen Star and the Flame Emperor joining forces. The Flame Emperor is a defective weapon, since it has a will of its own, but it's our best asset to bring to an end the power of our ancient enemy. Just killing him won´t assure us that the Fallen Star doesn´t reappear again. I need time to figure out how it was implanted into its current host to make sure it dies once for all. Until them we have to avoid at all costs they cooperate. Luckily I still have that Death Knight with me. Feel free to use it for your experimentation in Remire, Solon"

"It would certainly help us. I can´t wait to start our experiment with our new test subjects. Should I apply it to the children too?"

"Experiment with everyone. We could see interesting results in underdeveloped humans. Besides, the more fury they feel the better for us. Humans are expendable creatures, normally more useful dead than alive."

"What should I do Thales? I´m always away from all the fun" Kronya complained.

"Don´t worry, your time is approaching. Pretend that you are ill to avoid going to Remire. I need you to search for potential test subjects for another experiment I have prepared. With the power of the crest stones we have been creating we will be the only victors of the war that is approaching"

"The end of the current world order approaches" Solon smiled.

"And when they have outlived their usefulness we will get rid of all of them, Flame Emperor included" he smiled. "Start with the experiments immediately. I will head to the monastery to resolve another matter. If everyone complies our time in the shadows will be over soon"

…..

**11/23 Red wolf moon**

The sky was completely grey as Byleth walked through the monastery. Noticing Marianne, he approached her. He saw her taking care of the small animals of the monastery.

"Good morning Marianne"

"Oh, good morning Professor"

"You are always taking care of the animals"

"I´m sorry. I won´t disturb you with my presence"

"I wasn´t criticizing you" He had noticed that Marianne had no confidence in herself, but he knew that in the rights circumstances she was able to overcome it. "I really appreciate what you are doing. I just wanted to congratulate you for your birthday" he said as he handed to her a floral adornment"

"Oh, you really remembered it. Thank you, I appreciate it" she said a bit embarrassed. "Now, if you forgive me I will go to pray"

"What do you pray for?"

"I just give my gratitude to the Goddess and beg for her protection, only that. Now if you forgive me"

"From time to time you could talk"

The moment he said it she remained silent as if the mere thought of talking required of all her strength.

"I´m sorry. I just don´t know what to talk about. I don´t really enjoy talking to people. Since I was young I´ve barely had contact with other people"

"Why?"

"I…it´s just my personality"

"Don´t push yourself too hard then" he said, although he suspected there was something more to it.

"Sorry for taking your time. Goodbye" she said as she hurriedly walked away from him.

With nothing more to do he decided to enter the main building of the monastery to visit his father. He didn´t have to search for too long as he found his father on the first floor.

"Good morning father"

"Morning Byleth. I was looking for you"

"Has something happened?" he asked as he saw Jeralt worried face.

"There is something strange happening in Remire"

"Something strange?"

"Reports had come from merchants travelling nearby about unrest inside the village, yet we don´t have reports of new groups of bandits in the area. Some of them say that it must be a disease. Shamir has been near the village. She will tell us more about it"

He accompanied his father to the upper levels of the main building of the monastery. They searched for her and found Shamir talking with Manuela.

"Are you sure it isn´t a species of plague or something like that?"

"I can´t be completely certain about it, but the symptoms of the disease appear to be extremely strange. Some of them appear to be extremely aggressive, others can barely move and they eventually pass out. No ordinary illness could do something like that"

"What is happening in Remire then?" his father asked as he entered the room accompanied by him.

"Hello Jeralt, Byleth" Manuela greeted them. "I was talking with Shamir about the worrying reports coming from Remire. I highly doubt this is an ordinary illness. I suspect that it may be related to the use of magic, the darkest branch of it. I wanted to search about it in the library, but according to the personal working there Tomas is on a trip to Ordelia territory and as the librarian of the main library his knowledge would have been of great help to speed up the process of searching for more information, but I guess I wasn´t lucky enough"

"I have sent some soldiers to make sure that the situation doesn´t spread to other villages, but I think we should check the situation by ourselves as soon as possible" continued Shamir. "I was about to talk with Seteth about it"

"Let us accompany you them" Jeralt said. "My son and I are in good terms with the village. If we can lend a hand we would be happy about it"

"I agree"

"In that case I will tell Seteth about it" Shamir nodded, she then looked at him. "You should tell your students, we may need to leave this place soon" she said as she left.

"I will accompany all of you them. I can use my magic knowledge to help. Besides, Byleth helped me when I was attacked by the Death Knight. It is my duty to return that favor" she said winking an eye to him. "We may even have an opportunity to be just the two of us. What do you think?"

"I´m happy"

"If you say so" she said with a teasing smile.

"Sorry Manuela, but we will be leaving now"

"I will be preparing my things just in case we leave anytime soon"

Leaving the place accompanied by his father they headed to the stables.

"We should talk with the knights that had been around Remire. We may find something new about it. If you have any free time you should…"

He couldn´t hear the rest of his words as an intense pain in his chest made him fell to the ground.

"Byleth! Are you ok?!"

"I´ve just passed out"

"If you are feeling ill, you should return to the infirmary. You are the type that is hiding its own suffering when there are people around"

"Don´t worry father. It was just a moment"

"If you say so. I would take plenty of rest if I were you. Don´t push yourself too hard" he said rubbing his hair before leaving.

"What had just happened? I´m completely dizzy" Sothis complained inside his head.

"I don´t know either" The pain had come from his chest, but as he touched it he didn´t find something particularly strange. "I haven´t been using the Sword of the Creator recently so I doubt it is related to what had just happened"

"It may be just a sign of exhaustion. Take a good rest to about it happens again. Oh, my head, it hurts"

"Take care too, Sothis" he said as he headed to the canteen in search of his students.

…

"The circumstances are dreadful. I suspect they are doing one of their experimentations"

"If you know it don´t say it aloud" she said in an angered tone. It was obvious they were up to something. "It must be related to the experiments they were having on the child of the Goddess. I wonder what their purpose is".

"I suspect we will head in a short while to that place, although I am not looking forward it. Knowing them they may have a nasty surprise awaiting us"

"I know, besides, the imperial succession must be prepared too"

"About that everything is approaching smoothly. We should be quiet, someone is approaching" Hubert said, noticing someone approaching them.

"Hello Edelgard, Hubert. Have you heard about the events happening in Remire?"

"We have heard it from the knights. It is the same village where our paths crossed. The fact that a tragedy is unfolding upon it saddens me"

"It´s not the only event that has recalled my attention" commented Hubert next to her. "The raid to obtain Seiros´s bones, the Death Knight, the kidnapping of Flayn and our first contact with the Flame Emperor. You could draw a line between all of these events"

"Do you think that all of these events are related, my Teacher?" she said looking at him

Byleth remained silent for a while.

"I don´t think they are related"

"Really? Unexpected, but I have the same opinion" she said internally relieved by her Teacher´s response. "The events may appear to be connected by a single line, but I suspect that the thoughts and intentions of different people are intertwined with it. Thinking only in simplistic terms like enemies and allies won´t allow us to capture things accurately"

"You may be right. I need you to search the rest of the students. I´m not sure when are we leaving but my Father and I have asked Shamir to take part in the next expedition to Remire. Be alert in case we have to leave immediately"

"Ey Teach. In that case let me accompany you" Claude said approaching them accompanied by Dimitri. "Remire was the place where we all met so it wouldn´t be fair if we don´t help them now that they need us the most. You can count with the rest of the Golden Deer students too. I´m sure they will be pleased to lend a hand"

"I want to take part into it too." Dimitri said. "I couldn´t forgive something like that happening to innocent villagers. If this is the result of dark mages I will hunt them down. I won´t allow another tragedy to unfold" The looks on his eyes were darker than usual, his gaze completely serious.

"I´m counting with all you, but in case that you aren´t prepared I won´t be waiting for you. We will meet at the entrance of the monastery in case that we leave today"

"It looks like we will be leaving together. Don´t worry Teach I will be doing my part"

"I will do the same as well" Dimitri said as he left.

After the three house leaders and Hubert left Byleth headed to his room to prepare his own equipment. As he entered the room he looked to the box that contained the Sword of the Creator.

"Are you going to use it? You know what happened the last time you made use of it. I wouldn´t do it if I were you. Besides, there weren´t any reports about giant beasts wandering around the village. If they were some monsters we would have already known about it"

"You are right" he said as he picked an especially sturdy silver sword as his weapon of choice. With everything prepared he didn´t have much to do except wait for the signal that they were leaving the monastery. He decided to head to the main entrance of the monastery to buy more supply items in case they needed them in their next expedition.

The main hall was emptier than usual, with most students in their rooms preparing their equipment. He was heading to the main entrance when he saw Dimitri talking with a medium aged man.

"Oh, Hello Professor" Dimitri greeted him as he approached him.

"So this is the famous Professor I have been hearing about. Nice to meet you. I am Volkhard von Arundel, current regent of the Adrestian Empire"

The middle age man had brown hair and purple eyes that remembered him of Edelgard. The moment he heard his full name he recalled the conversation he had with Hubert a few days ago. "She was even betrayed by her own uncle"

"Nice to meet you" he said shaking his hand, although he was angered by the man in front of him.

"I didn´t expect to see you here uncle, since you stopped funding the Church years ago"

"My economic situation was in a difficult spot so I had to stop the funding of the Church. I assure you there is no other reason for that. I will be leaving shortly. I have already done what I wanted to. It is a pleasure to have been able to finally meet you Professor. I hope that one day our paths will cross again"

"Aren´t you going to greet Edelgard?"

"In other occasion. Don´t worry, I am in good terms with her. Farewell to both of you" he said without looking back.

"Did you call him uncle?"

"I did. We aren´t linked by blood, but her sister was married to my father. Her sister is the mother of Edelgard, so her bonds with her are even stronger, although I feel he has changed as time has passed." He said as if he were thinking aloud his inner thoughts. "I see that you are already prepared for battle, as expected from you. I hope that we don´t have to deal with a dire outcome. I don´t want to resort to violence against defenseless civilians"

"Me neither, but we have to be prepared for every outcome"

"That is easier said than done, but I believe in your words, Professor. I will meet with my classmates, no matter the time we will be right here when you give us the signal. I will do whatever I can to stop another tragedy" Dimitri said as he started to leave.

"Dimitri"

"Yes Professor?"

"We will save the village"

"I´m counting on you, Professor" he said, although his eyes still had clouds of darkness.

"The little Princess and the serious Prince´s bonds are really interesting. And now we have finally met the biological uncle of the little Princess. I don´t know why, but I have the feeling that the relationships in that family are overly complicated" Sothis said inside his head.

"It must be because the fights of power between the nobility and the fact that they are the future rulers of two different nations"

"The smiley guy doesn´t give me the same feelings, but I guess it could be because he isn´t completely sincere. I have realized that family is something very important to humans. I think I had a family once, but I can´t barely remember, yet I feel sad when I think about it. I wonder why"

"A family" he thought. The only family he had all this time was his father, or so he thought. He was starting to think about their students as a natural extension of the world he had known until know"

"Sothis"

"Yes Byleth?"

"If you want to I can be your family"

"What are you saying all of a sudden Byleth?" Sothis said, slightly embarrassed. "I guess that since we are always together you can consider it as that. You have grown more sentimental as time has passed Byleth. I´m happy to see how you are changing for the better. Let´s make sure that your dear students don´t get into trouble"

"Don´t worry, I will make sure to protect all of them" he said as he bought provisions for their upcoming expedition. His surroundings were full of activity, with knights entering and leaving the monastery.

"That will cost you 1500 gold units"

"Thank you Anna" he said as he handed the money to the red haired saleswoman.

"You are one of my most frequent customer." She said with a smile. "I´ve heard worrying reports coming from Remire. I hope that everything is ok."

"We will be heading there shortly"

"In that case I wish you the best of lucks. Without security trade can´t prosper. I hope that everything ends in nothing. If you find anything relevant during your trips give it to me. I will reward you accordingly"

"Understood"

"It´s always a pleasure doing trades with you, Byleth" she smiled to him as the next customer approached to her store.

After leaving her behind he headed to the stables where he saw his father talking with one of the knights.

"Hello again son, prepare the students. We are leaving now. If we hurry we could arrive to the village before the sun sets, we have to do our best for their sake"

"We won´t fail them, understood father"

"I will go to tell Manuela about it"

It didn´t take too long to have all of his students waiting at the entrance of the monastery.

"I hope the villagers are alright" said an especially worried Dorothea.

"We will make sure they stay safe" assured her Edelgard.

"Where is Monica?" he asked, noticing that the red haired girl wasn´t among them.

"She is inside her room. She says she is ill so she won´t be taking part in our expedition to Remire" Edelgard answered, although by the look of her eyes she appeared to doubt Monica´s excuse.

"We have a few hours of travel ahead. You can talk, but it´s better to leave now" Shamir said, already wearing her battle outfit.

"You are right, everyone, let´s leave already" he ordered.

Their flying units were checking their surroundings as their main forces were advancing through the well maintained roads of the Church. His father and Shamir had brought some soldiers of the Church, which were meant to replace the soldiers that acted as a firewall in the surroundings of the village.

"Only a few months ago we casually met at the same village that we are heading now. Time passes really quickly." Claude said, riding next to him.

"In both cases the situation was really dire, but no matter the obstacle we will overcome them. If the suffering of the people of Remire is due to the acts of evil men they must be brought to justice" Dimitri said.

Most of the students of the Blue Lions agreed with Dimitri´s words, but he noticed that Felix wasn´t particularly impressed by his leader´s words.

"Byleth, come over here" his father said.

As he approached him he saw that Shamir was riding next to him.

"How are your students doing?"

"Some of them appeared to be ok, but I´m sure that all of them are worried by the reports coming from the village"

"Me too. This year is really a strange one. The rebellion of Lord Lonato, the assault to the Holy Tomb, the kidnapping of Flayn. I know that the Church has many enemies, but I didn´t expect so many problems to appear at the same time"

"No matter where you go you are going to meet with problems, but the situation is turning increasingly unstable in Fódlan. The last time I remember such level of instability was when the Dagda and Brigid invation happened" Shamir said.

"That was a really intense battle. The Empire hired us to increase their forces against their invasion"

"If you had ever met me I would have been known as the woman that took down the Blade Breaker" Shamir said with a smile on her usually serious face.

Hearing her response Jeralt laughed.

"I didn´t expect less coming from you Shamir. I know that in Dagda all of you are well trained. It was an extremely difficult war"

"If you came from Dagda why did you stay in Fódlan" he asked.

"That´s a good question Byleth. After the war I had nowhere to go and Rhea took good care of me. I don´t believe any talks about the Church and the Goddess but I work for them as repayment for Rhea´s help. Besides, as a knight of Seiros I´m free to punch some fancy nobles faces from time to time so I guess it isn´t a bad job at all. You could say that the Church is a good business partner"

"That´s really the only good part about it" Jeralt laughed. "Although we shouldn´t talk aloud about it. Most of my son´s students are nobles after all"

"Don´t worry Jeralt, I have the same opinion than you" Claude said, which appeared to have heard all their conversation.

"I must disagree with such comment. I must admit that some nobles have done terrible things, but most of them aren´t like that. Don´t you think the same Ferdinand?"

"I couldn´t agree more with you, Lorenz. We will proof that when we protect those villagers. I won´t let nothing bad happen to them!"

"That´s not a matter of being a noble or not." Ashe said as he looked at him. "Professor, I will do my best too."

"I´m counting on you"

Looking at the chattering of his students his father sighed.

"They are so different to each other, yet they look so alike when they are together. I couldn´t tell the difference of a commoner and noble between them. But they are a bunch of kids. Sometimes I wonder why we are sending them to battles and things like that"

"You have taken me to the battlefield since I was child"

"I know that I´m not the father of the year, but there wasn´t another option with you. Travelling around Fódlan you had to be prepared to face every possible danger"

"I´m not blaming you. I´ve never regretted the time we have shared together in the battlefield or in our travels"

"Those are quite the words son" Jeralt said smiling, touching his shoulder.

…..

The talks between his students grew scarce as they approached their objective. He had called back his scouts since they have already entered the perimeter set by the Church around the village. Edelgard was riding her mount next to him.

"These forests are the ones we crossed that night when we were running away from that group of bandits. I didn´t expect to meet someone like you there. It feels like yesterday, yet several months have passed since then"

"I´m glad I was able to meet you there. I regret nothing"

"Me too" she said with a faint smile.

"Teach don´t forget me, I was there too remember?"

"The Professor wouldn´t forget about someone like you Claude. By the way why are you always calling him Teach?"

"Not a particular reason. I just think it really suits him"

"I´m glad that I was able to meet all of you" he said.

"The first time we met I thought you weren´t that expressive Teach. You have changed a lot"

"He may have changed but you haven´t changed a bit Claude"

"Don´t be too harsh on me Imperial Princess. You are not that solemn anymore, it must be thanks to Teach. You too Dimitri. Now both of your presences are bearable"

"I´m not sure if I should be complimented or offended by your words Claude" Dimitri sighed.

"Teach, your father is calling you" Claude said looking at the top of a hill a few meters ahead of their main column.

Leaving his students behind, he reunited with his father at the top of the hill.

Shamir, Jeralt and Manuela were talking with one of the knights that were part of the perimeter of security around the village.

"Any new findings?" he asked.

"We haven´t seen any signs of violence." the soldier informed. "In fact, we haven´t seen any sign of activity since noon as if the villagers were secluding themselves at their homes."

"That sounds really strange" Manuela commented with a pensive glare. "Have you seen any signs of recent cases of deceases?"

"Nothing for now, at least nothing that we can see from our positions"

"If this were a disease we would have heard cases of it in other villages since Remire is the main road to several merchant routes, but we haven´t heard anything about it"

"Let´s hope for the best" his father said. "We should approach the village just in case. They may be hiding from something or someone. We have to make sure they are safe."

"Sir Jeralt!" one of the Church soldiers approached them breathing heavily.

"What happened?"

"Multiple fires are appearing around the village. The villagers have suddenly left their houses they appear to be fighting each other!"

"What the hell? It almost sounds like they were waiting for us to come" he then looked at him. "Summon your students, we have to stop this now!"

After telling them the situation of the village the students accompanied him to the village where Shamir and Jeralt where already waiting. By the look of their faces he knew that they weren´t pleased at all by what they were seeing.

The moment he saw the situation of the village a rage he had never felt before crossed through all his body.

"I will never forgive the perpetrators of this crime" he promised to himself as he watched the unfolding tragedy, his hand searching his sword.


	41. The tragedy of Remire

"The villagers are killing each other!"

The slaughter happening in front of them was difficult to believe. Most of the villagers were in frenzy like state attacking others villagers with hoes, axes, rusted swords or even their bare hands. Not only men and women were trying to kill each other, even children were taking part in the slaughter.

"Kill, kill!" shouted one of the villagers as he started to butcher an old man, incapable of moving anymore.

"What deplorable circumstances" Edelgard said next to him, her eyes full of anger. "We have to stop this before the village turns into a living hell"

"The responsible of this slaughter will pay with their blood" Dimitri said, the expression of his face extremely angered.

"Some of them appear to be unaffected. Our priority will be to take care of them. Protect them from the frenzied villagers. If necessary neutralize them" he said unsheathing his sword, an intense anger flowing through his veins.

"The fires will make difficult for us to use our winged mounts and horses inside the village. We could use the Pegasus to bring the sane villagers to a safe place, before the situation turns worse" Jeralt said, observing the situation of the village.

"There is no time to waste. We have to save them!" he said as he entered the village accompanied by his father, Shamir and the rest of the students.

One of the villagers was about to be gutted by one of the frenzied villagers, but he arrive in time to stop the attack. Disarming him he pushed him to the wall of one of the houses of the village.

"Blood, blood, I need to kill!" shouted the villager as he tried to bite him. His eyes were completely white, but a black substance was pouring from them. The veins around the face were contracted as if there was something acting inside the body of the villager.

"Come to your sense!" he said as he tried to apply healing magic to try counteracting the blight affecting the villager, but it was unsuccessful.

"There are coming more! They are going to surround us!" alerted him the sane villager.

With no other option he killed the frenzied villager with a sword attack to his heart and prepared to face the group of villagers that were charging at him. Just before they were at him Dimitri and Dedue arrived to assist him.

"This is not a battle, this is a slaughter" Dimitri murmured as he killed one village after another with his lance.

"There is no other way. I tried to heal them, but they are beyond salvation now. We have to protect the ones that aren´t affected by it" he said, his ire growing stronger with each villager he killed.

…..

"The situation is worse than I expected" Edelgard thought as she defeated another frenzied villager. They were slowly advancing to the center of the village, but the amount of destruction was increasing the hatred she felt against their kind.

"It is clear that they want to catch our attention since they are committing such atrocity in the surroundings of the monastery, but why?" There was no particular reason unless they wanted to make them fall into a trap. "I must stay by his side."

Their kind had been strangely interested in the skills of her Teacher and his connection with the Sword of the Creator. Seeing him battle after battle she had the hope to convince him to join her cause, even if that was a dangerous bet. "With him by my side we could defeat them when the time comes, but for now I have to get through this" she said to herself as she arrived to the middle of the village. When her eyes noticed the presence of Tomas and their kind observing the tragedy unfolding around them the hatred she felt extended through her body like a flame.

…

"My Teacher! There are some people witnessing the slaughter at the bottom of the village. They must be the responsible of this tragedy. One of them appears to be Tomas!" Edelgard shouted as she approached his position.

She was right. Among the burning houses a group of people were silently staring at the slaughter unfolding around them. One of them appeared to be Tomas, the librarian of easy smile. He was smiling, but the look of his face was sadistic. The moment their eyes met his smile grew wider.

"He is behind all of this" he thought, the fury he was feeling already difficult to control. He was about to charge at him when he heard the cry of one of his students.

"Annette!" he shouted as she saw the Blue Lions student cornered by a group of three frenzied children.

"Please stop! I don´t want to harm any of you!" she said crying, but her pleads were ineffective against them. One of the children was charging at her, a knife in her hand.

Stopping the attack he immobilized the children to the ground, but they were resisting, a black substance pouring from their mouths.

"I will try to heal them" Mercedes said approaching them and casting her most potent healing magic, but nothing happened.

"Please close your eyes, Annette, Mercedes" he said as he prepared his sword. He didn´t want them to see what he had to do. Aiming to the heart they instantly stopped moving, although the sobbing of Annette was piercing his mind.

"My Teacher, Jeralt has prepared an evacuation area. They are carrying the injured and survivors to…" she stopped what she was saying the moment she realized what had just happened.

"They will pay for this" she said her eyes filled with an intense determination. "I won´t forgive such atrocity"

"Everyone, join the forces of my father we have to settle a perimeter for the survivors!"

Most of the students were at the center of the village, accompanied by his father, Shamir and some soldiers of the Church, but by the look of their faces and the corpses around them they were suffering the same than his group.

"This is a nightmare, right?" Dorothea asked; her face paler than usual.

"If it is I want to wake up already" Linhardt said.

"Even children…" Caspar murmured, his usual combative personality toned down by the tragedy unfolding around them.

"Byleth, I will keep the position here to make sure that the evacuation isn´t interrupted. Kill those bastards" Jeralt said, furiously looking at Tomas and his soldiers.

"Understood"

"I will accompany you too" Edelgard said.

"Me too. I will kill them with my own hands. Those bastards don´t deserve to live any longer"

"I will cover your back with my bow, Teach"

"With me!"

Accompanied by the three house leaders they started to approach Tomas´s position.

"Look what we have here. The situation of the village is disheartening but I´m glad to meet you again, Byleth"

"Enough of this madness! Why are you doing this?"

"Sometimes for progress you have to make some sacrifices. It didn´t matter the place, but the results and I am really satisfied with them. With these results a brilliant future awaits us. Your kind reproduces like rabbits. The deaths of these villagers are bearable"

"You won´t have any future. I will kill you here and now!"

"Menacing me? How interesting. At least now I´m free of the chains of this pitiful appearance" Tomas said as a dark mist covered him, revealing his true form. What appeared in front of them was an old man with a head of an unnatural size and eyes that weren´t human.

"This is my real form. You can call me Solon. I will bring an era of prosperity to my kind and in order to achieve it I´m afraid I will have to get rid of you. Kill them" he ordered. As he said those words purple clouds started to appear around them, black clothed soldiers appearing around them.

"We can´t afford to let him escape!" Edelgard shouted as she killed one of the first attackers with her axe.

"Coward! Come here to fight us!" Dimitri said as he fought against a group of armored soldiers.

"If we want to know the truth we have to catch him" Claude said shouting arrows.

Byleth was killing one enemy after another with brutal strength, the powers of his crest completely activated. He was slowly approaching Solon´s position when a scythe appeared from the shadows, aiming to his heart. Stopping it with all his strength he looked to the face of his new attacker.

"What are you doing here?" the Death Knight asked, looking at him and Edelgard.

"You should be the one answering that question. Stay out of our way!" Edelgard said

"Why are you helping them?" Byleth asked as he counterattacked with his sword, but the Death Knight was a formidable adversary.

"Words are not needed to fight. Kill or be killed, that´s the only thing that matters in this world"

"In that case allow me to end your life here, Jeritza"

Releasing all his power he used his sword to break through his defense. Blow after blow Jeritza stopped the incoming attacks, but he couldn't counterattack due to the speed and fury of his attacks. One fortress knight tried to attack him from behind, but the moment he noticed him he used his sword to cut through metal, flesh and bone, cutting him in half in a savage hit, but his sword broke due to the force of the impact. Taking advantage of that situation Jeritza tried to kill him with his scythe, but he avoided the attack jumping to a side.

Using the wall of one of the destroyed houses he jumped behind him and released a fire spell at point blank range, the explosion sending both of them to the ground, the scythe landing between both of them. Rushing to it he took it and approached him, Jeritza was trying to use his second weapon, a silver lance, but he couldn´t completely deflect his attack, that pierced through his stomach.

"This pain…is nothing"

"You try to hide behind that helmet, but I know who you really are. Why are you doing this Emile?" Mercedes asked running to them, a sad expression on her face.

"Mercedes…stay away from me"

"Don´t approach him, he is too dangerous. He is a menace to us all" Byleth said, preparing to give the final blow.

"I can´t avoid it, he is my brother" Mercedes said her voice starting to crumble.

"Brother?" he thought a second of doubt slowing his weapon.

Taking advantage of that moment Jeritza disappeared in a purple mist.

"There is no time to lose my Teacher" Edelgard said approaching them, her armor covered in blood. "We have to catch Solon before he escapes"

"You are right. Mercedes stay with the rest of the group and take care of the injured"

"Understood Professor" she said, although the sadness in her face was evident.

The fires were ravaging the buildings of the village, but most of Solon forces and the frenzied villagers were already dead. Approaching the hill at the bottom of the village he prepared the Death Knight´s scythe to attack.

"You are but a savage, an insignificant beast, yet you think you can kill me?" Solon said smiling to him as he looked to the weapon he was wielding. "How ironic seeing the Fell Star using our own weapons. I will take this occasion to measure your power" he said as he released a beam full of dark energy.

Casting a protective barrier Byleth stopped the attack and slowly advanced against him. The remaining forces of Solon were trying to attack him, but Edelgard stopped their attacks with their axe.

"Tomas! No… Solon. I will stop you"

"What?! If you insist on turning your blade against me, then expect no mercy"

Byleth was a few meters from him. Channeling all his power into his hands and legs he jumped on him with the scythe. Noticing that, Solon erected a magic barrier.

Black fire was emanating from the area were the scythe was impacting against the magic barrier.

"You have failed. No matter what you do we have succeeded with our experiment."

"It won´t be in vain if I kill you!" he said pressing harder against the magic barrier, the first fissures starting to appear on it.

"I´m afraid that I cannot allow you to kill me" Solon said as he released a dark magic spell the very moment that the barrier was finally destroyed.

The spell impacted in parts of his body and the scythe that broke, but using the destroyed weapon he was able to pierce Solon´s stomach.

"If you can bleed that means that you can die." He said as he approached him.

"I have no time to die in a place like this"

"He is about to escape" Sothis shouted inside him.

Jumping on him he was able to grab one of his arms as he was engulfed by the dark mist he was used to see. The moment they teleported the world around them turned black, places where he had never been appearing and disappearing.

"Let me go! Warping isn´t supposed to work like this, you are going to kill both of us!" Solon shouted trying to release himself from his grip.

"You will pay for what you have done! The only one who will die this day is you, Solon"

The world around them was continuously changing as if they were in the middle of a tornado. Trying to reach for his neck Byleth charged his remaining energy into his hands as Solon did the same, a magic explosion sending them in opposite directions. The moment he lost grip of him he fell to the ground, although luckily the autumn leaves lessened his fall.

"I´ve fallen in a forest" he thought, unsure where he exactly was.

"You must have fallen nearby. I can see smoke coming from the distance" Sothis said inside his head.

"I wonder where he has run away." He knew that Solon was heavily injured, but he was certain he would heal himself with the use of magic. "If I had pierced his heart and not his stomach…"

It took him a few moments to arrive to the hill where he had battled against him. His father was on his war horse, checking his surroundings with a worried expression on his face. The moment he saw him, he rushed to his position.

"Where the hell had you been? I´ve heard that you jumped on that bastard and then you disappeared"

"I tried to kill him to make him pay for his crimes, but he was able to escape. I appeared in the middle of the forest, but I´m not sure where he is right now"

"I guess we will have to take care of him soon." He then looked to his surroundings with a sad expression on his face. "The village is no more. We saved everyone we could, but even in that case I can´t avoid feeling guilty about what had happened here. Innocent civilians killed next to the domains of the monastery. What kind of knight I am if I´m not able to save them. This is infuriating" he said as he kicked a stone.

"The only thing we can do now is to take care of the injured and give them a place to rest"

"We will take them back to the monastery. I´m sure that Rhea won´t mind having them with us, until they have a safer place to stay. I will make sure that the others villages don´t find the same fate"

"So you were here" a metallic voice said.

The voice came from behind them, the moment he turned around he saw the mysterious Flame Emperor a few meters away from them.

"The Flame Emperor?!" Jeralt asked, surprised by his sudden appearance.

"I see that you have met my subordinate, the Death Knight"

"Met your subordinate? What the hell are you saying? Because of you innocent villagers have been killed. Have you come to finish the job that your Death Knight and Solon started?" Jeralt asked as he prepared his lance.

"Don´t misunderstand!"

"What?"

"It is true that I have worked with Solon, but that doesn´t mean that our objectives are the same. If I had known that they were up to something like this I would have acted in retaliation. You have my word"

"The word of a person that hides behind a mask means nothing. If you really mean your words you will accompany us to the monastery"

"I cannot abide that. However, if you wish to join forces, I will hear your plea. If left on their own they will certainly cause more harm. However, if we join forces we will be able to stop them, before they cause any more harm" the Fire Emperor said as he looked at him. "Don´t you wish to stop them? With you by my side I am sure we will get rid of them. With the Sword of the Creator on our side Solon and their kind will be destroyed" the Flame Emperor said extending his hand to him. Even if the Flame Emperor´s voice was distorted he could feel a strange combination of feelings within it like longing and desperation.

Looking at him he realized that the Flame Emperor didn´t have any weapons with him. He then approached him.

"Byleth, don´t go near him. It must be a trap!"

"He has no weapons with him" he said, stopping just in front of the Flame Emperor. He could hear the Flame Emperor´s breathing, which was unusually quickly for a being with such an ominous presence.

"I don´t trust you, but you have come to us wielding no weapons so hear my words. If you really mean what you say you will show it with actions and results. I won´t ally with someone that hides behind a mask and has the Death Knight as a subordinate"

"A logical response I guess, but a pity nevertheless. I hope you won´t have to regret that decision." The voice was distorted, but he sensed sadness in it. "Why is he trying to make us join us to his cause?" he asked to himself.

"Don´t try to menace my son. Enough of this fancy talk. You´ve heard Byleth. Proof to us what you mean or we will hunt you down like the monsters that have committed this tragedy"

"Professor! Lady Edelgard is missing!"Hubert said rushing to their position.

"What?!" Jeralt said in a surprise tone. Byleth was also surprised by it, since he had never seen Hubert in such an altered state.

When he looked to the Flame Emperor again he was nowhere to be seen.

"He ran away, the bastard" Jeralt cursed.

"Hubert, let´s divide to search her. She must be close to our position. See you later father"

"Understood Professor"

"See you later son. I will check this area just to make sure that the Flame Emperor isn´t around"

He ran through the burned houses and destroyed fences but there was no sign of her. The last time he had seen her she was next to him, but with the combat with Solon he had lost sight of her. Feeling an increasing anguish he continued his search.

After running through one of the burnt houses she found her next to a group of bushes.

"My Teacher I was…oh" her words interrupted as he embraced her.

"I thought you were kidnapped by them. I was so worried about you" he whispered to her ear.

"I´m sorry for making you worry about me" her hands, which had been immobile until now slowly started to climb his back. "I´m here I won´t go to any other place"

"Teach, your father had told us that the little Princess was missing have you…" Claude stopped walking the moment he saw them. "I guess that you have found her" he laughed.

"Byleth was just making sure that I was alright" Edelgard said slowly taking her arms off him.

"Don´t need to rush in case that you need more "checking", but the rest are waiting at the entrance of the village. We should be going" Claude said with a teasing smile, leaving them alone.

"Were you able to get rid of Solon, my Teacher?"

"Regrettably not. If I had aimed to the heart he would have died and one of our problems would be already solved. When I returned to the village the Flame Emperor made his appearance. The Flame Emperor affirmed that he wasn´t related to the incidents of the villages and asked for our cooperation"

"The Flame Emperor also appeared during the events of Flayn´s kidnapping" Edelgard said with a pensive glare. "Do you believe his words?" she asked looking directly at him.

He stood silent for a moment. He was tempted to think that it was just a decoy, but that reasoning didn´t make any sense. "He appeared in front of us with no weapons and tried to deny his connection to their group, risking being killed by my father and me in the process. That means that they aren´t the same group even if they have connections between each other" he thought.

"I believe his words, but that doesn´t mean that I can trust him"

"Really?" Edelgard was shocked by his response. "He is an unknown entity with unknown intentions. Perhaps one day he will appear once more in front of you, without a mask covering his real self. We should go with the others. They may be worried about us"

Most of his students were in a depressed state, mourning the deaths of the innocent villagers.

"This was a slaughter of innocents" Dorothea said. "What the hell is happening around us? Why do the weakest have to suffer like this? It´s not fair"

"That such events had taken place is regrettable. We couldn´t save everyone, but I´m glad you are safe Dorothea"

"Ferdie, thanks for your kind words. I really appreciate them"

"I´m sure that they will turn into good spirits and they will help all of us in times of need. In Brigid we believe that even when we die a part of us remains here and fuses with the nature" Petra said.

"I hope that they aren´t suffering anymore. I wasn´t able to help them and the Death Knight… No, now it´s not time for that" Mercedes said, adopting a praying gesture.

"Merciful Goddess, please take care of the innocent" Marianne said next to her.

The soldiers of the Church were carrying the bodies of the dead to a pyre they were preparing, since burying the bodies would take excessive time and they had a lot of survivors to take care of. His father was among them. He was about to join them when Shamir approached him.

"Byleth, Manuela has found something strange in the bodies of the dead. She wishes to show you what she had discovered"

"I will go"

"Take care. I know that your father and you were on good terms with them" she said patting his back before heading to the place where his father and the Church soldiers were placing the bodies.

He found Manuela examining one of the dead bodies of the villagers. Fortunately, it wasn´t the body of one of the children.

"Hello Byleth. Examining their bodies has confirmed my fears. This is a clear case of dark magic. Their blood has turned black and the inner organs of most of them had been completely destroyed as if they were devoured from the inside."

"How could such incident happen?"

"Dark magic isn´t necessary by itself an evil branch of magic, but the misuse of it for centuries had labeled it with such a name. A particular branch of it is focused on the effects of magic in the human body, but with the purpose of enhancing it. This appears to be the case with these bodies. However, the deplorable state of their insides makes me think that there is another element that has taken part in the process. Something that must have multiplied the effects of such effects on their bodies"

"Could something like this happen again?"

"I would like to deny that possibility, but I can´t assure you something like that. The only thing we can do is to remain vigilant to avoid that another tragedy like this takes place. I have collected some samples. I promise you that I will investigate about this matter"

"I´m counting on you"

"You saved me the other day. Some students told me that the Death Knight appeared again. You should have caught him. I wanted to ask Jeritza why he tried to attack me. Perhaps was I too attractive?"

"I´m glad that you are safe"

"I appreciate your kind words Byleth, but I´m sure that some students may require your support more than ever before. You are free to go with them, but first could you carry this body?"

"Understood"

Carrying the body of one of the fallen villagers he approached the pyre where most of the other bodies were already placed.

"They didn´t deserve what happened to them" his father said looking to the bodies of the victims. "Even children. They will pay with their life. How could something like this happen?"

"We will avenge them, but first we have to take care of the living"

"You are right. The students must be having a hard time. Even if we arrive in the middle of the night we should leave this place soon. Keeping their minds busy will help them deal with the effects of the tragedy better"

"You are right about that" he said as he watched the soldiers of the Church preparing the oil for the cremation.

"Professor, if you don´t mind I wish to hold a small ceremony for them to assure that they leave this world under the protection of the Goddess" Mercedes said approaching them accompanied by Marianne and Flayn.

"I wish to lend a hand too"

"Even if we weren´t able to save them all we must take care of both of them. The ones who survived and the ones who didn´t. I will join them too, Professor. It is my duty as a member of the Church" Flayn said.

"You are free to do the rites. I´m sure that they would thank you if they knew" Jeralt said patting their backs.

"Byleth, if you could light a fire, it would be of great help" Shamir said.

Approaching the pyre he touched two of the tree trunks at the base of the pyramid. Using his remaining forces he casted a fire spell and in a short while the entire pyre was engulfed by flames. The sound of the flames was accompanied by the songs of Mercedes, Marianne and Flayn, which were quickly accompanied by most of the students. The pain he could hear in their voices hitting him the hardest.

"A sad end for them, but I assure you that their deaths won´t be in vain" Edelgard said, next to him. "We will find them and destroy them."

"And we will live for them. For the lives that were cruelly destroyed during these events" he said as one of his arms embraced her from behind.

"You are right. We will live for them too" she said looking to the flames, doing the same to him.

…

Their return to the monastery was done in complete silence. Most students weren´t feeling like talking after the events that had just happened and his father and Shamir were respecting their silence. A cold wind was blowing as if nature itself was sharing the same sadness they had.

As they approached the grounds of the monastery he thought about the events that had just happened. The deaths of the villagers, the real identity of Tomas, the apparition of the Flame Emperor. There were many things they didn´t understand yet, but he knew that they were lurking in the shadows, waiting for a chance to strike again.

"We don´t know their plans, but one thing I am certain of. We will stop them" Sothis said inside his head.

"No matter what it takes I will stop them. Their deaths won´t be in vain. I promise"

"I guess that this is the price of the recovering of your emotions. When you feel pain it will hurt more than ever before, but it is a pain worth the price for all I´ve seen happening to you."

They remained the rest of their return silent, each one of them lost in their own thoughts. It was already past the midnight when they arrived to the entrance of the monastery, the soldiers of the Church opening the gates to allow them enter the inner grounds of the monastery.

"Good job everyone. Feel free to rest until new command. It´s natural to mourn those who are not with us anymore, but don´t forget the ones we were able to safe. If they are with us it is because you were there this day."

"Thank you for your words, Professor. I think I will take a few days off." Dorothea said as she headed to her dormitory, her usual smile nowhere to be seen.

"You could say that it could have been worse, but even in that case it leaves me with a bitter taste in my mouth." Claude sighed.

"Innocents were killed this day. We will avenge them. When the day comes count with me, Professor" Dimitri promised him, although his eyes were still clouded.

"That time will come, but first we will have to be prepared for it and we have to take care of the villagers too" Edelgard said.

"We will be informing Rhea about what had just happened. You are free to go to the dormitories" he said as he followed Jeralt and Shamir to the audience room.

Rhea and Seteth appeared to have been informed in advance of their arrival since they were waiting for them despite the time of their return.

"It´s a tragedy what had just happened. I am certain that the Goddess shares in our grief at this meaningless tragedy. More importantly I was shocked to hear that Tomas, our own Tomas was actually a Dark mage" Rhea said, her hands adopting the position of a prayer.

"First instructor Jeritza and now Tomas. This monastery is full of intruders and traitors. What kind of security measures do they have here? It´s infuriating and pathetic the lack of sight of the members of the Church" Sothis said.

"Who was Tomas?"

"He was the head of the main library of this monastery for 40 years. He came as a recommendation from House Ordelia, a noble house from the Leicester Alliance. A few years ago he returned to the Leicester Alliance, since he said he was already too old to fulfill his duty. Despite that, he returned last year adducing that he wanted to spend the rest of his days surrounded by the books he had grown used to love as his own children. We didn´t see anything strange with him so we accepted his return. Jeritza came to work here as a recommendation from the imperial nobility. The fact that Instructor Jeritza and Tomas were working for the enemy means that we have to be more vigilant from now on. More than ever before. Our enemy must have links with the Leicester Alliance and the Empire if they were able to infiltrate in such a way" Seteth said.

"I suspect that they are part of a greater menace for the safety of all of Fódlan. I will send the knights to investigate about this matter as soon as possible, but first we have to take care of the injured and the innocents affected by this tragedy. The Church must aid them in times of need"

"We have to stop them all, don´t you think Byleth?" Sothis asked him.

"I will stop them with everything I have"

"I appreciate your attitude but don´t try to find them alone. You will have the support of the Church on this matter" Rhea said smiling to him. "I am sure that most of the students must be depressed by the events they have had to endure, but I hope they return to their former selves with enough time. For the time being classes will be suspended. I will inform you when classes will restart again" she then looked to his father. "Jeralt, if you don´t mind could you return to Remire tomorrow I want you to accompany you to the place where these events took place"

"No problem at all"

"In that case I will go too" Seteth said. "The security of the archbishop is of great importance. I will tell Alois about our current plans. Feel free to rest Professor. You have done a great job. That´s all for today" he said as he left, accompanied by his father and Shamir. He was about to leave too when he heard Rhea´s voice.

"Professor, please wait"

"Yes Rhea?"

"I know that there is much that you still do not understand. However, one thing is clear. You possess a great power within you. I expect great things from you. May the Goddess Sothis protect you"

The moment he heard her words he froze.

"Sothis?"

"Has something happened?"

"No. I´m just tired"

"Oh, I see. I hope that you have a good rest. You have endured too much already. See you soon Byleth"

"The Goddess Sothis? What does she mean by that? What am I? My head hurts. For now, just leave this place. I need time to think about it"

After leaving the audience room he was heading to his room when he saw light in his father´s room. Knocking the door his father appeared shortly after.

"Hello Byleth. Has something happened?"

"I´ve just wanted to see how you were"

"I was about to have a drink. Feel free to accompany your old man with it" he said, opening the door to let him pass.

He took a seat in front of him as his father poured some liquor on his cup.

"This surely has been a long day" he sighed. "There are so many things we don´t really understand that I feel like I´m banging my head against a wall"

"The students are depressed about it too"

"I think so. They are a bunch of kids sent to a world filled with cruelty. I would be the same if I were them" he sighed again before looking at him. "Talking about the students, since the time you started teaching here you have changed a lot. You look so happy when you are surrounded by them, but not only that. Seeing your face during these events made me realize that you appear to be more expressive. I´m not saying that you were emotionless before, but you used to be colder, at least that was how I felt when we were travelling around Fódlan as mercenaries. You have even been able to fall for someone even if you told me you weren´t going to confess your feelings"

"The students have helped me to change"

"They have, and for the better. Looking at you, I can´t avoid smiling. I have the feeling she is smiling too" he said as he looked through the window. "I miss her. I really miss her, but having you is the greatest blessing I´ve ever had. You really remember me of her. At first she barely talked, but as we grew closer she opened her heart to me and that was the moment I realized I was madly in love with her"

Hearing his words he felt an intense happiness inside him.

"Having you as my father is the greatest thing I´ve ever had. I wouldn´t change the time I´ve spent with you for anything"

"Maybe there was never any reason to leave the monastery in the first place…"

"Wasn´t I born after you left the monastery?"

"I´ve put my foot into my mouth, haven´t I? I will tell you some other day when we have time to spare"

"Don´t worry I can wait for it. You are my father after all"

"We have turned into a pair of sentimental men" Jeralt laughed. "We are lucky that the company is not around here to listen to this conversation. Don´t worry I feel that we will have plenty of time to share sentimental stories from now on" he said, rubbing his hair. "The days are getting darker and in no time the first snows will fall here, but before all that happens you should take a rest. I´m sure that the students would be extremely worried if their favorite Professor was too tired to lead them. At least I´m sure that Alois would be extremely worried about your wellbeing. I still wonder how he is one of the high ranked officials of the Church"

"It must be because he learnt from you. I was appointed as Professor of this monastery the moment I arrived. Good night father"

"Rhea really has a strange way to choose her personal. Good night son"

Closing the door behind him he headed to his own room. The moment he arrived he sat on his bed recalling everything that had happened. Solon or Flame Emperor, it didn´t matter if someone was trying to attack his students he will make sure that they would pay with their life.

"I will protect them as my father protects me" he thought. Slowly, tiredness took hold of his body, leading him to the world of realms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge hug to everyone reading this story. I really appreciate it!


	42. Ethereal winds

**11/29 Wyvern Moon**

The day was completely gray as Byleth patrolled the aisles of the monastery. Since the events of Remire the security in the monastery had been reinforced and it wasn´t strange to see group of guards patrolling the aisles. The classes had been suspended until the beginning of next month, but Byleth knew that it would take more time than that for most students to handle the recent events.

"We barely know anything about them and their objectives" he thought as he headed toward the students dormitories.

He had been one of the first to access the former librarian´s room, but he hadn´t been able to find something of interest. The room was extremely modest and there wasn´t any signs of hidden passages within it, but that didn´t mean that they were safe. He had the ominous feeling that they were going to hear about them soon. Recalling their appearance he remembered the pale skinned people he had seen in his visions.

"I wonder if they are Argarthans"

"Do you mean the people of your visions? They might be, but those events took place a long time ago. Even if they are related to them they weren´t the ones that took part in the war you see in your dreams. They share some traits with humans, yet they are completely different from them. I wonder when that divergence took place"

Thinking about it he continued his patrol until he came across with Ferdinand, which was standing next to one of the windows.

"Oh, hello Professor."

"Hello Ferdinand, how are you doing?"

"It´s still difficult to believe what had just happened a few days ago, but I guess it isn´t something easy to forget" he said, his face darkened by the recalling of the events of the last days. "However, I´m glad that we were able to save most of them. If we weren´t there I fear that the outcome would have been worse"

"You did a great job" he said patting his shoulder.

"I appreciate your words, Professor. Talking about Remire, it was the village where you first met Edelgard. Now that I think about it if you and Jeralt weren´t there it would have ended into a tragedy too…or one of the three knew that soldiers were staying at the village. Well… the truth will remain in the shadows. The only thing we can do is imagining it"

"What do you mean?" When he first met with the leaders of the three houses they had already been around the village for several weeks, but he didn´t recall any kind of peculiar visitors arriving to the village during that time.

"Don´t mind my words Professor. I was just thinking aloud about events related to Remire. As you know, Remire is in imperial territory even though it is extremely close to the monastery. By chance or not, I´m glad that you were able to save all of them. I think I will have a cup of tea. You are free to accompany me if you want to"

"Thank you for your offering, but I must continue patrolling the grounds of the monastery until new order"

"Understood. If you feel like resting I will be in the main hall. I may be able to talk with Lorenz. I need someone to spend some time with" he said as he left him alone.

As he continued his patrol he thought about Ferdinand´s words. The attack of the bandits in the surroundings of Remire was a really strange event. Why would they try to attack a group of students heading to the monastery even though those students were escorted by the Church forces? It was a risky objective for a group of bandits.

"Do you think they were hired by someone?" Sothis asked inside his head.

"The leader of the bandits said something about it in his last moments. I haven´t thought about it until now, but it makes sense that they were hired by someone else. The real question is who was interested in that?"

"One of the Professors ran away due to the bandit attack and you were the one to occupy his position. Among all the members of the monastery they could have chosen someone else yet the archbishop decided to entrust you with that position. Maybe their real objective wasn´t attacking the students, but infiltrating the monastery taking advantage of that vacant"

Thinking about the staff of the monastery Jeritza face came to him. "Jeritza was the only one I recall staying all these months in the monastery. He didn´t have any tasks so he could have been a suitable Professor instead of me"

"And that Jeritza is the Death Knight, right? And the Death Knight works for the Flame Emperor. In that case you could say that the bandit attack was a plan of the Flame Emperor to infiltrate in the monastery. As a Professor he would have more freedom to move around the monastery without being questioned and he could get in contact with the students easier, but unexpectedly you got rid of that possibility"

"The Flame Emperor had his own agent working in the monastery and the kind of Tomas had Tomas working at the monastery. Seteth said that Jeritza was hired as a recommendation from the Empire. That could mean that there is someone in the Empire interested in infiltrating the monastery, but why?"

"This conversation is really interesting, but we can only wonder about the intentions of those lurking in the shadows. If we were able to catch one of them we may get some extra information that we need, but until then we can only make hypothesis about it"

"The more we look into it the less I understand" He felt that there was something odd with all of it, yet he couldn´t do anything about it. "We must search for the truth to avoid further problems"

"Have you turned into a detective now? Talking about wondering about things, I can´t stop thinking about the words of the archbishop. Am I the same Sothis that the one which is worshipped by the Church? In that case, why am I inside your head? It doesn´t make any sense. Does it make you a god or something like that?"

"I don´t think so, since I´m mortal, but even if you are the Goddess I don´t mind you staying inside my head"

"From time to time I would like to take a walk by myself, but I´ve grown fond of your company" she smiled to him. "You should continue your patrolling or people would start to think you are just daydreaming"

"You are right" he said as he continued his path.

**12/1 Ethereal Moon**

The weather has turned even colder as the days passed, but there wasn´t still any sign of snow, although by the look of the clouds the first snows would start to fall soon. As a response to the lower temperatures torches had turned into a common sight within the grounds of the monastery and the audience room wasn´t an exception to it.

"Good morning Byleth. I hope that you and your students are doing better" Rhea greeted him with her usual smile, which appeared to reserve especially for him.

"Some of them are still impacted by the event, but I can´t really blame them. The events that took place at the village will be difficult to forget"

"It is true that the events of last month were especially tragic, but I hope that the celebrations of this month can bring some light to the sadness they must be feeling." She said adopting a praying gesture. "This month is a particular one compared to the rest of the months. In consideration for your efforts I won´t give you any assignments outside the monastery"

"But that doesn´t mean that you can forget of your duty as a Professor" Seteth continued. "One of the main events of this month is the White Heron Cup. It is a competition between the members of the three houses. Each one of them must choose a representative to take part into it. As a Professor you can´t take part in the competition, but it is your duty to choose one of your students as a class representative"

"I will talk about it with my students"

"That´s not the only thing that´s going to take place this month. To prepare for the departing of the Goddess the monastery must be adorned accordingly. Decorating the aisles and the classrooms is an activity that most students enjoy and I am sure you will lend a hand on this matter too. I have also received a proposition for making a play from one of your students. If I am not wrong, the student´s name is Dorothea. She wants to use the money earned from the play to raise funds for the villagers of Remire."

"I will help with that too" He said lightly smiling. He knew that Dorothea had experience with Opera and theatre and he didn´t mind lending a hand for the poor villagers.

"I am afraid that you will be quite busy this month." Rhea said with a gentle smile. "After the White Heron Cup the main event of this month will take place: the night of the Ball. In this case you will have to take part in it, since each house leader and their Professors are the ones to open the Ball for the rest of the students. I hope you can give me a turn to dance with you, Byleth"

"A Ball? And you are going to start it with your dear little Princess. That is an interesting turn of events" Sothis said with a teasing smile.

"I don´t know how to dance"

"That is something easy to resolve" Seteth said. "Practice makes the master. If you can defeat countless enemies I don´t think you have something to fear from a couple of dancing lessons. Don´t forget that since you and the other two Professors are the ones that are going to open the ball you are going to be observed by the rest of the students. I don´t want you to underperform before them since they hold you in high regard. I wish you the best of lucks"

"You have plenty of time until that day comes so I wouldn´t worry too much about it, Professor. I am sure you will surprise all of us once again"

"Talking about putting unnecessary pressure on someone" Sothis sighed inside him.

"Even if most students are going to be busy with all these tasks find some time to teach them as usual. I wouldn´t want Flayn to underperform just because is this month of the year"

"Understood" he said as he left them behind.

"This is going to be an interesting month. And no more fighting for a while. I think that I´m going to enjoy it"

"It really appears to be a month completely different to the previous ones" he said to her as he headed to the Black Eagles' classroom.

All of his students were already there, waiting for him. Everyone except Monica, that appeared to be still ill.

"Hello Professor, did you hear about my idea for this month?" Dorothea said, greeting him with her usual smile.

"I did. I will tell all of you about what we are going to do this month. First of all, we have to decorate this class and the aisles of the monastery with elements appropriate to this season of the year."

"That sounds great! I´m feeling like a kid again"

"You haven´t changed at all though, Caspar" Linhardt yawned.

"I can make some decorations for the monastery, since I know something about sewing" Bernadetta shyly offered.

"That would be great. The more we can do the better. There is also the idea of Dorothea."

"I want to make a play to light up the mood of all of the students and at the same time I want to send the money we may earn to the villagers of Remire"

"That sounds like a fantastic idea, Dorothea" Edelgard said. "May I ask which play is the one we are going to do?"

"Since is a play for the villagers I thought about one of those famous chivalry stories. I think that the Professor would do a good role as the protagonist of the story" she mischievously smiled. "When I have thought all the details I will tell all of you"

"In that case let me continue with my explanation. The White Heron Cup will take place in the following weeks. Each House must choose a representative to take part in it. If there is someone interested feel free to tell me now" he said as he looked at Dorothea.

She was about to talk when Ferdinand talked first.

"In that case let me be the representative of the Black Eagles. I will show all of you the talent of Ferdinand von Aegir!"

"I thought you were changing a bit, but you are still the same" Dorothea sighed. "I´m also interested in participating in that event"

"That means that we should have a competition to choose who is going to be our representative. It will be an impartial trial about our talents. Don´t you think it´s a good idea Professor?"

"In that case I want to participate!" Caspar roared.

"You, dancing? That is really a surprise" Linhard said with his eyes wide open.

"More than the dancing part I like the competition aspect of it. I will give my best shot to it"

"I will do the same. If I win people might know more about the dancing aspects of Brigid. Besides, I think that I can dance quite well"

"That´s something I want to see too, even if we are rivals" Dorothea said with a smile.

"I will give it a try too. I want to see my brother´s reaction" Flayn giggled.

Byleth thought that nothing good could come from it, but he didn´t have any objective reasons to refuse her.

"Don´t look at me. I promise to make some decorations, but don´t make me dance" Bernadetta said trying to hide from his side.

"I will pass too. It would be a waste of everyone´s time" Linhardt said.

Nodding at him he then looked at Edelgard. She was about to speak when Hubert talked.

"With Lady Edelgard´s permission I think I would take this opportunity to participate"

"Oh, my. That is really unexpected. I didn´t think you were fond of dancing Hubie"

"More than interested in dancing it would be interesting to see Ferdinand´s face when he is defeated. If he can´t win against me I would proof that his meaningless challenges against Lady Edelgard are just empty words."

"You are so confident you will defeat me, but your technique is quite lacking, Hubert. No matter the rival I will defeat all of you. I will proof that I´m the best dancer of the monastery!"

"I must admit that this sounds like an interesting event for all of us" Edelgard said with a faint smile, looking at all of them.

"It seems that we have quite a demand for this competition. We should organize a tournament to resolve our little differences" Hubert chuckled, a sinister aura emanating from him.

"Then before the main event takes place we will hold a competition within this house to select our representative for the task. As your classmates Edelgard, Bernadetta and Linhardt will be the judges"

"Better than moving I guess" Linhardt sighed.

"Finally, a great ball will take place at the end of the month. I´m sure that most of you have already heard about it. The assistance is obligatory, but I suppose we won´t have any problems with it. According to Rhea, the Professors of each house open the ball for the rest of the students accompanied by their respective House Leaders." He said as he looked directly at Edelgard. "However, I must admit I don´t have any experience regarding dancing"

"Oh, that is interesting too" Dorothea giggled. "Don´t worry Professor. I´m sure that Edie will be a great teacher for you, but in case you need any help I will lend a hand too"

"You can count with me on that matter, my Teacher. If you were able to dance too I would be extremely surprised about your upbringing"

"I hope that you don´t waste Lady Edelgard´s time. A disappointing performance would be only on you to blame"

"Don´t worry, Hubert. I will do my best too" he then looked to the rest of the students. "Then it is settled. We will prepare for the White Heron Cup, Dorothea´s play for the villagers of Remire, the decoration of the monastery and the night of the ball. However that doesn´t mean that we will be skipping class for the time being"

"That´s asking too much Professor" Linhardt complained.

"Don´t worry. It will be a theory class"

"Theory is like a fight. I remember your words, Professor"

….

"Now that the class has ended you are free to do as you please, but remember that we will be decorating our class tomorrow and those of you that are going to participate in the dancing contest should practice for it"

"You should practice too, Professor, although I think I leave you in good hands" Dorothea said with a teasing smile. "I will prepare the play too. I´m looking forward the things will be doing this month"

One by one they started to leave the classroom, except Edelgard, which was waiting for him.

"My Teacher, when do you want to start your dancing lessons?"

"I guess that the sooner the better, but I can wait in case that you are busy with all the preparations"

"You don´t have to worry about that. I´m pleased to return the favor to you since you have been aiding me all this time. We could practice in the afternoons in this room if it is of your liking. There is enough space and I don´t think we will have any problems practicing here since it is our own class"

"That´s a good idea. Is it tomorrow a good day for you?"

"It is. Until tomorrow then" she said with a smile. "I will think about the decorations for our class too"

"See you tomorrow Edelgard"

After watching her leave the room he decided to head to the greenhouse of the monastery. Even though the wind was already chilly, the interior of the greenhouse hadn´t changed a bit. It appeared to be a good place to stay as the exterior grew colder. He wasn´t the only one to think the same.

"Hello Professor!" greeted him Petra.

"Hello Petra, what are you doing here? Are you checking some plants?"

"I was practicing here for the dance contest. It is the place more similar to Brigid around this monastery"

"Do you miss your home?"

"I do, but this place isn´t as bad as I thought. When I arrived first here I thought I would be considered a hostage, but Edelgard has been very nice to me"

He knew that Brigid had been on the losing side in the last war against the Adrestian Empire and as a consequence Brigid had turned in a vassal state of the Empire, but he had the hope that with students like her and Edelgard the future would be brighter.

"I´m glad to hear that. I´m sure that with you as the next leader of Brigid great things will happen"

"Thank you Professor. A lot of people don´t know about Brigid, but I´m sure that if they learnt about it they would come to appreciate it. That´s why I will give my best to win this competition. To show Brigid´s culture to the rest of the students"

"I won´t spoil your dancing lessons then. Good luck" He was curious about what was going to prepare Petra as a dance, but he could wait until the day of the competition within his house.

"Thank you, bye Professor"

After leaving behind the greenhouse he decided to head to the entrance of the monastery. The area was filled with merchants that were trying to sell all their goods to the inhabitants of the monastery. He wanted to buy some presents for Bernadetta and Dimitri since he knew that their birthdays were approaching.

"Greetings Professor! Nothing to report" said the gatekeeper. Even if their interactions were minimal he couldn´t avoid feeling friendly with him.

"I see that you are doing your work as usual"

"It is my duty after all. Finally this period of the year has finally arrived" he said with a smile. "It is my favorite month of the year and I´m sure that most students will enjoy it too"

Byleth knew by the look of most of his students that they were looking forward it. It made him feel happy despite all the suffering they had to endure the previous month.

"I´m sure about that"

"The great Ball is quite an event every year. Even though the event is focused on the students that doesn´t mean that the members of the Church can´t take part into it. I don´t know how it started, but I must congratulate the first person to start this custom. However that it´s not the only event that takes place during this month. Do you know anything about the Goddess Tower?"

"The Goddess Tower?" Byleth recalled going to that place during their exploration of the monastery to prevent the assassination attempt against Rhea. "I thought that that place was out of bonds"

"It is an area exclusively reserved for the members of the Church as you could realize by its name it holds a deep meaning for the members of the Church. It is the place where some rites take place every year and it is usually out of bonds for the students, but once a year that prohibition is lifted."

"Why?"

"I´m not sure how the events originally unfolded, but that place is said to grant the wishes of those who visit the place at night. About a hundred of years ago a pair of students made a vow to stay together no matter what and their wish was fulfilled. Since then lots of pairings try to go there to make their wishes come true. I envy the youngsters around here" he said sighing.

"Did you meet someone there?"

"I was a student here too, but no one appeared… However, that doesn´t mean that I have to give up. Maybe someone is thinking about me and I haven´t realized yet. It would be unfair if only the student´s wishes could be granted. By the way Professor, do you have someone in your mind?"

"Someone I want to meet…" he thought as Edelgard´s face appeared in his mind, making his heart ache a bit.

"I may have"

"That´s not a proper answer at all Professor" he laughed. "In case that you didn´t have someone I planned to invite you to make our wishes come true, but I guess that you have another person in your mind"

"How about you?"

"Well, I don´t really have anyone right now, but with all the events of this month I´m sure that something might happen. If the day after the ball you see me with a smile on my face you will know that it was a success"

"I wish you the best of lucks" he said with a faint smile.

"You too, Professor. To be fair, I´m a bit envious of you. You are quite popular, did you know?"

"Really?"

"Of course! I´m the Gatekeeper so I know quite a bit about the things happening around the monastery and I can assure you that. Anyway, I hope you have a great day"

"See you later"

"Wishes been granted by the Goddess herself, how interesting. If I am the Goddess does that mean that I´m capable of granting wishes? I´ve never heard about it"

"It may be just a custom, nothing more"

"Even if you are right about that I would like to be able to do something like that. Besides, when the gatekeeper talked about the Goddess Tower the little Princess´s face came to your mind. I would like to lend a hand about it"

"There is no need to do something about it"

"Are you feeling embarrassed about it? You heard the gatekeeper and the archbishop. This month is a peculiar one, even if most months have been really strange since our arrival here. I´m looking forward all the things that are going to take place here"

After buying everything he needed he approached the fishing pond, where Alois and his father were fishing. He had bought something for him too, since he knew that his birthday was at the beginning of the month.

"Hello Byleth!" Alois greeted him with his usual smile.

"You are really expressive Alois. You haven´t changed a bit since the first time I´ve met you. Hello son"

"You are the one that hasn´t changed a bit. Even now you are an expert fisher. I really envy your technique. Why don´t you teach me?"

"I tried once, remember? When things don´t work there is nothing I can do about it" Jeralt sighed before looking at him. "What are you doing son? Do you have any plans? If you want you can join us"

"I have nothing in particular to do today. Tomorrow I will be helping my students to decorate the classroom and the monastery"

"This is my favorite part of the year. The world gets sweeter if you know what I mean"

"By the way Alois, happy birthday" he said as he handed him a fishing float.

"You did remember Byleth, thank so much!" he said as he crushed him with one of his hugs. "You said that you will be helping your students with the preparations of this month. If you ever need me I´m here for you. Let this Alois lend a hand!"

"I can´t…breathe"

"Alois, I know you are fond of my son, but you are going to kill him at this rate" he said laughing.

"My bad"

"Don´t worry. I´ve got used to it I guess" he said as he picked a fishing rod.

"He has always been like that. There are some things that never change I guess"

"This really feels like the old times"

"Particularly the fact that you still suck at fishing" Jeralt laughed.

"That´s a very mean comment Jeralt, but I must admit that you have a point there. The fishes appear to hate me!"

"That is because you shout a lot" he said with a faint smile.

"Sorry. I can´t control myself sometimes" he said sighing. "Let´s talk about something different. The White Heron Cup is going to be quite a celebration. I´m going to be one of the judges so even if you are Jeralt´s son, that doesn´t mean that I will let your student win easily"

"Who are the other judges?"

"If I´m not wrong Manuela and Shamir. Manuela really enjoys watching the performances of the students and in the case of Shamir I asked her to join us since we have to be at least three judges. But the best part of the month won´t happen until the night of the Ball." He said with a dreamy look.

"You appear to have fond memories of it"

"Of course I have. It was the first time I danced with my future wife. I can´t describe with words the magic I´ve felt that night. You may think otherwise, but I´m actually quite fond of dancing, but she was even better than me. After the Ball we agreed to meet more often and after a while I declare my feelings for her and she accepted them. Now I´m happily married with a precious daughter. I have nothing to complain, although I would like to see them more often"

"Is her a member of the Church?"

"She was one of the maids that served Lady Rhea back at that time, but she currently lives in one of the villages nearby. Luckily she didn´t live in Remire. If something had happened to her…"

"I know how you feel Alois, but I´m glad that your wife is alright"

"Thank you Jeralt. How about you? Do you have any fond memories of this month of the year? You were the leader of the knights for quite some time before you left and returned again"

"I had a couple of dances with your mother. I wasn´t quite gifted, but she was patient with me" he said fondly looking at him.

"I´ve never seen you dancing, except after hearing those tavern songs when we were travelling around Fódlan. I would have paid to see something like that"

"Don´t hold your breath Alois. I think my days of dancing are done, but I´m looking forward the banquet of the night of the Ball"

"By the way Byleth, are you planning to invite someone to dance? I can teach you some dancing skills if you want to impress someone"

"Thank you for your offering, but I have no one in my mind, although I must practice since I will be opening the Ball to the rest of the students" As he said that his father looked at him with a fond smile, but he say nothing about it.

"Oh I see. I forgot about that custom. Anyway, if you ever need my help I´m here for you"

"If you keep talking you are going to miss a good catch, Alois"

"Agh! You are right!"

They continued chattering as they fished. By the end of their fishing session his bucket and the bucket of his father were full of fish, while Alois´s was lighter weighted, although he didn´t appear to care about it.

"This was surely a good day. It feels nice to rest of my duties from time to time"

"Don´t say it aloud Alois. Seteth may hear us"

"Ugh, you are right about that"

"After a good session of fishing it is time for a good meal, don´t you think Jeralt, Byleth?"

"You are right Alois. Do you want to have a meal with your old man, son?"

"Nothing would make me happier" Hearing his response Jeralt couldn´t avoid smiling.

"I guess that I really like this time of the year" he said as they headed to the canteen.

The place was unusually crowded with students, member of the Church and the villager they were able to rescue from Remire. Looking at some of the children, he couldn´t avoid feeling sad about them.

"I know what you are thinking, but we did what we could. For now the only thing we can do for them is keeping them safe until they have found a place to continue their lives"

"Lady Rhea is really a nice person. She ordered to use the empty classes as a temporal shelter for those who have lost everything, although part of the villagers have moved to the village next to the monastery since they have some relatives living there"

"You have always had a soft heart, Alois" Shamir said approaching them accompanied by Catherine.

"Hello Shamir, Catherine. You can be a knight and have a soft heart I guess"

"Of course, I´m not criticizing you" she then looked at Byleth. "You did an impressive job back at the village. Your father has really trained you well"

"You are complimenting the Professor, but you don´t do something like that to me, Shamir"

"Are you feeling insecure just because I didn´t compliment you? And here I thought you were considered a mighty warrior" Shamir laughed.

"No need to be like that. I guess that this month makes you being nicer, even people like you Shamir" Catherine said taking a seat before looking at him. "It´s been a while since the last time we trained. I would like to cross blades with you soon. If you don´t train hard enough you will bit the dust the next time we fight. Don´t let these fancy celebrations distract your fighting spirit"

"Don´t worry I will remain focused on my duties"

"You really are confident about your abilities" Catherine laughed. "I guess that Rhea wasn´t wrong about choosing you. At first I thought she was mad, but she appears to have made the right decision once again. By the way, how is Cyril doing?" she said as she looked at Shamir.

"He is devoted to protect Rhea as always, but he is doing his best so I can´t really criticize him. You two are so devoted to Rhea that he would suit you as an apprentice"

"You said it as if it was a bad thing" Catherine laughed. "By the way Professor, have you thought of taking someone as your apprentice?"

Byleth had never really thought about taking an apprentice. He knew that his father has taught fighting techniques to Alois and Leonie, but that was when he was travelling around the world as a mercenary, unless he could consider all his students as an apprentice.

"I think that my students are my apprentices"

"You really have started to think like a real Professor" Shamir laughed. "Although you are most of the time outside with them fighting enemies so I guess that it isn´t that different to the mercenary life"

They continued talking and eating as he thought about their conversation. It was true that they were battling for the Church across all of Fódlan, but the bonds that had been formed between them were something that had come to appreciate for the first time in his life. When he was fighting as a mercenary alongside his father he valued the lives of his comrades, but he had never suffered about them as he had when he had witnessed the deaths of some of his students.

"You must thank me for saving you dear student´s lives. If it weren´t for me your reputation of invincible Professor would be in peril"

"I thank you for that, but I know that I can´t abuse my luck. I will keep alert to protect all of them"

"Byleth, your lunch is going to get cold"

"Ah, sorry Alois"

After the lunch with the members of the Knights of Seiros he decided to head to the student´s rooms. The wind was already furiously blowing outside of the building and he sensed that in no time they will witness the first snows.

"What are you doing here? Are you going to visit the little Princess? Can´t you wait for tomorrow?"

"It´s not that. I´m just curious about Monica´s health"

The usual cheerful student had been missing all their classes since their expedition to Remire. Seeing Edelgard less stressed was a relief, but he knew that as a Professor he had to watch for the wellbeing of all of his students. He searched her room, knocked on her door and waited a few moments, but nothing happened.

"It looks like no one is there" he thought.

"Professor, are you looking for Monica?" Hilda asked him as she approached him carrying a bunch of books.

"Yes, do you know where she might be?"

"I´m barely familiar with her, but these last days I´ve seen her in the library. I was going there. If you want we can go there together."

"Thank you"

"No problem. In that case, could you carry these books for me? They are too heavy for me"

He knew that she wasn´t sincere about that, but he didn´t mind lending a hand with something as trivial as that.

"I have no problem carrying them for you. Let´s go"

"Thank you. Claude should be more like you" she sighed. "He is always saying that I´m too lazy for my own good, but this month I will show him that he is wrong. After all, dancing is one of the things I like the most. Finally this monastery is going to hold something similar to a festival"

He knew that Hilda was fond of fashionable things so he didn´t surprise him to know that she was looking forward the events of this month.

"I´m sure that it will be a good month"

"That was unexpected coming from you, Professor. I thought you would say something as "focus on your studies" or something like that. Manuela is quite easy going on matters like that, but in the case of Hanneman is completely different"

"They have quite the personalities"

"Talking about personalities, don´t you think that Monica is a bit off? I´ve heard that she was shy back when she was here last year, yet she seems to be more cheerful and outgoing right now. It is as if she had changed her personality to be friendlier"

He barely knew anything about Monica´s past. He knew that she was the daughter of Baron Ochs, a noble from the Empire, but apart from that her everyday life up to her mysterious disappearance was completely unknown to him.

"How do you know about it?"

"I´ve heard the gossips of some of the Church members and I´ve met her once last year before her disappearance. The students that attended the monastery with her had already graduated so they were the only source of information about her and I was frankly curious about her since when I first met Monica, she appeared to be the shy type. She may be dealing with her trauma using a different personality than her own."

"You may be right about that. You appear to be quite perceptive about this kind of things"

"It´s what you would consider instinct" she said with a smile. "I hope that nothing strange happens from now on"

"We won´t be having any assignments outside and I will be here to protect all of you"

"A confident answer" she said as they arrived to the library. "Look, I was right. She is over there"

Monica was chatting with some of the students that held their classes in the lower levels of the monastery. He wasn´t acquainted with any of them, but he vaguely recalled some of their faces from the events of the mock battle at Gronder Field. The moment she realized his presence she approached them, accompanied by some of the other students.

"Hello Byleth, how are you doing?"

"I was looking for you. You have been missing for more than a week"

"I caught quite a bad cold, but I´m better now. I promise to get back to work as soon as possible. I was just enjoying some of my spare time with a group of friends. They help me to forget the difficult times I had to endure when I was kidnapped" she said as she looked to the group of students surrounding her.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Professor. I know that you are the main Professor of the Black Eagles. Our victory in Gronder Field is something I will never forget"

"The pleasure is mine. We won´t have any assignments this month so I hope you can completely recover from your illness. Tomorrow we will start decorating the class if you want to come to aid us"

"I will consider it. It would be a pity if I fell ill again. See you later Byleth" she said with a smile, closely followed with her group of friends.

"I´m quite surprised by the amount of friends she has been able to make, although all of them are from the general classrooms of the monastery"

"Hey Teach, Hilda, if you are going to stay there talking it would be better if you take a sit with me"

"Oh Claude, I didn´t see you. I´m sorry"

"No problem"

He didn´t want to be rude and since he had made all this way to arrive to the library he didn´t mind spend some time with the Golden Deer Students. He took one of the magic tomes of the library and started reading about it. Hilda pretended to be reading something, but she was making a new personalized accessory.

"What are you reading Claude?"

"Just stuff about the history of Fódlan. There are some things that are good to refresh from time to time. Do you know when this monastery was built?"

"As far as I know it was built a thousand years ago. This year will mark the 995th anniversary of the building of the monastery"

"That´s a lot of time" Claude laughed. "With such a long history you would think that there would be more information about it, yet I´ve barely found any information regarding its origins. I heard that you went to Tomas…no Solon´s room. Did you find anything interesting?"

"The place was completely empty apart from some furniture. I checked all the walls and there weren´t any secret passages"

"This monastery must be full of them, but we barely know anything about it, although that isn´t surprising since the information about this place is so lacking" Claude said, more thinking to himself that talking to them. "Changing the subject, how are the preparations for the White Heron Cup. Everyone is talking about it"

"We have yet to decide who is going to take part into it. How about your class?"

"If I tell you know I would spoil the surprise, don´t you think Teach?" Claude said winking an eye to him. "You will soon know about it. I´ve heard that there is some kind of prize for the winning of the tournament, but I haven´t heard anything more about it"

"You are always thinking about the potentials rewards. Wouldn´t it be better to just enjoy the moment?" Hilda said while sighing.

"A reward is what makes things more interesting, don´t you think Teach?"

"In that case we won´t lose" he said with a faint smile.

"You sounded like Edelgard. I told you back then Teach, between Edelgard and Dimitri I was the best option" he said joking, although he noticed that his eyes had a bit of disappointment on them.

They continued chattering and reading for a while until the sun started to set.

"I´m already tired" Claude said yawning "Nothing better to end the day than to have some food, do you want to accompany us, Teach?"

"Thanks for the invitation, but I´m not hungry. Go ahead without me"

"No problem, see you tomorrow. Let´s see which class is going to be the best decorated" Claude said as he left the library accompanied by Hilda.

After putting the book in its place he left the library and headed to his own room.

"This day was surely a long day" Sothis said.

"From time to time days like this aren´t that bad"

"I´m glad to hear that coming from you. I wonder what kind of accessories have prepared your students for the decoration of the monastery"

"No matter what they have prepared I´m sure that our class will be the best decorated."

"You are showing again your favoritism" although she was smiling, sitting on her stone throne.

"I think I will make some decorations too for the class"

"Oh, that sounds really interesting. What are you planning to do?"

"If I told you know I would spoil the surprise. You will discover in a moment"

"You really sounded like the smiley guy, but I guess I can wait" she said as he walked towards his room.

…..

"Have you found anything new about Monica´s whereabouts, Hubert?" she asked.

The sun had already set and the wind was furiously blowing outside the walls of the monastery but her room was comfortably warm.

"She appears to have some new friends with the students from the general levels of the monastery, but I haven´t found anything beyond that, although the fact that she has been able to make "friends" is disturbing by itself"

"Why would be pretending something like that? Do you think she plans to make use of them?"

"It would be a stupid move with most of the knights here in preparation for the events of this month, but we shouldn´t ignore her whereabouts. Her reckless attitude is something to take into account, but I don´t think she would do anything unless being told so. Have you received any news from the Death Knight?"

"He has returned to the Empire, but the damage is already done, the fact that they have used them in their experimentation in Remire angers me" As days passed, she had thought about all the possible intentions of their kind for the use of the Death Knight and she suspected they had done their best to frame her Flame Emperor persona with those events.

"You shouldn´t have appeared in front of the Professor and his father wearing that disguise. It was a really dangerous bet, you could have been killed there or worse send back to the archbishop"

"I´ve told you before that I need all the help that I can gather to fulfill my objectives. The Professor has an extraordinary strength and he is the wielder of the Sword of the Creator. If he joined our forces we could rely less on them, until the time we get rid of them arrives" She knew that Hubert was worried about her wellbeing, but she knew that she had to take some risks if she wanted to achieve her objectives. Besides, she had the hope that he could eventually side with her. "Even if he didn´t trust the Flame Emperor completely he must have realized that we aren´t on the same boat" A part of her knew she had to prepare for the worst outcome, but her heart still had some hope.

"I know that you hate working with them, but directly opposing them would have meant the death of us all. They think that they have the upper hand on this matter, but when they realize what awaits them it will be too late. I promise to cut a bloody path for you, Lady Edelgard"

"I appreciate your words Hubert. Talking about preparations the imperial succession is approaching. Are they suspicious about it?"

"Duke Aegir is completely blind about our movements. The same could be said about my father" he chuckled. "The rest of the great Houses seem to be more focused on their mundane disputes so I wouldn´t worry about them"

"How about my uncle?" The regent could create for them important problems if he realized in advance what they were planning to do.

"His arrogance blinds him. I know that every misstep could send us to our premature deaths so I´ve been especially careful with our contacts. I can assure you he doesn´t suspect anything about our plans"

"That´s is relieving at least" she sighed. "Keep an eye on Monica. We must avoid her doing something dangerous here"

"Consider it done" Hubert said bowing to her.

"Changing the subject, I was impressed about you taking part into the dancing competition"

"Even if I´m not too fond of those kind of events that doesn´t mean I wouldn´t enjoy crushing Ferdinand´s dreams of winning" he said with a sinister smile.

"Don´t treat him that harsh. Even if he is always trying to compete with me I know that he doesn´t have any bad intentions behind him. He isn´t like his father, after all"

"I know that, but I´m sure he will eventually thank me an appropriate lesson of modesty. Now if you forgive me. Good night, Lady Edelgard" he said as he bowed again and closed the door behind him.

After he left she sat on her bed and sighed. The events of the village had been a painful reminder of how powerless she was against them, but she didn´t plan to back down on her plans. "I will be the one to have the final word after all of this ends" she promised to herself. Thales, Solon or Kronya, it didn´t matter. She would crush them all when the time comes.

Looking at her desk she realized she still had plenty of decorations to make. She had decided to lend a hand on that matter and she wasn´t disappointed by her handcrafting skills.

"I wonder if he would like them" she thought as she sat again on her chair in front of the desk. "I must make sure to teach him properly too" Teaching her Teacher about something as mundane as dancing was an interesting turn of events, but she didn´t dislike it. In fact, she was glad she could help him. "He has helped me all this time. It is the minimum thing I can do for him" she thought as she continued making decorations, her mind relieved from the worries that had been tormenting her since the events of Remire for a while.


	43. The White Heron Cup

**12/2 Ethereal Moon**

Byleth was already waiting in the classroom when his students arrived. Edelgard, Bernadetta, Petra, Dorothea and Ferdinand were carrying decorations with them.

"Hello everyone" he greeted them as he saw the decorations they were carrying. "I see that you were giving your best efforts for this task"

"I did my best, although I´m not sure if it is completely perfect" Bernadetta said as she handed him her handmade decorations. They were based on floral motives.

"They are perfect. You have done a good job"

"You can compliment more if you want to" she said with a shy smile.

"Bernadetta isn´t the only one that has done something. Not only I´m preparing for the dance competition, but I have also made some decorations to improve the mood of the class thanks to the help of Dorothea" Ferdinand said with a wide smile.

"The last time you prepared something you end up burning your hand so I thought you will have another accident. They are quite simple, but I think they are adequate for this month"

Having a look at them he realized they were based on the snowmen that the children used to make when snow fell.

"It is certainly a good choice"

"Simple yet fitting for this time of the year" Dorothea smiled.

"My Teacher, I decided to lend a hand on this matter too. Since we are the Black Eagles class I thought it would be nice to have a decoration related to the emblem of our house, although the result could be improved" Edelgard said as he showed him a bunch of handmade double headed eagles.

"I couldn´t have done it better" he said with a faint smile rubbing her hair.

"Favoritism" Linhardt yawned. "I did nothing since I was preparing to be a good jury"

"That excuse is lame Linhardt"

"Yours is worse. You were picking a fight again"

"But after that fight we got along again so I don´t think there is anything strange to it"

"Don´t worry. We will need every free hand to put all these decorations before the day ends. I´m sure our class will be the best. I´ve prepared some decorations of my own, although they aren´t that good" he said as he showed to them what he had been hiding in his pocket.

"Oh my, you have made little figures of all of us" Dorothea said, slightly losing her composure.

"More likely you tried" Sothis said, covering her mouth as she laughed "But I´m sure your dear students will be happy about them". They weren´t quite refined, but they could be identified by the distinctive traits of each of them. He had made one for each one of them, even Monica, although she appeared to be missing that day too.

"This is highly unexpected, but I appreciate it" Linhardt said.

"You have caught my facial expressions quite well, Professor" Hubert said, looking at his own figure with a sinister smile.

"Please don´t smile like that. It is enough having a figure with the very same smile!" Bernadetta cried.

"In Brigid the shamans use figures like this to make the person represented in them suffer, but sometimes are used to protect their owners. Thank you for making amulets for us Professor!"

"I didn´t expect something like this, but I really appreciate your efforts, my Teacher" Edelgard said as she touched her own figure. She then looked at him and genuinely smiled to him, making his heart ache.

"But the Professor is missing" Dorothea said as she looked to the group of figures.

"I didn´t make one of myself"

"You should have done one, Professor" she complained as her eyes suddenly lightened up. "Edie, how about you make a decoration of the Professor?"

"Why me?"

"Since you are the leader of the class I think you are the most suitable person to make something like that and I´m sure that the Professor would be happy about that. Right Professor?"

"I agree"

"In that case I will do my best" Edelgard said avoiding her sight as she toyed with her hair.

"Seeing the decorations that you have made I´m sure you will do a great job Edie. By the way Professor, when everything ends, can I keep it? I will like to keep it as a memory of this year at the monastery"

"Feel free to do it, all of you" he said looking at everyone. He was happy to know that they liked the little surprise he had prepared for them and he wanted that they had a memory of him after they had graduated from the monastery.

"Then it is settled" Dorothea said with a wide smile. "Let´s get started with the decoration of the room"

…..

"Put those ornaments over there, next to the column" He said to Dorothea as he found a spot where to put the decorations he was holding.

"Understood Professor. With all these decorations the classroom looks completely different" she said with a smile.

They had been working for an hour in the decoration of the classroom, but they still had plenty to do. The walls were still naked, although Alois had brought to them some decorations that the monastery had spared for them.

"Do you have any news about the play you are planning to do?"

"I´ve already prepared the libretto and Manuela has helped me to make several copies of it. After the White Heron Cup ends and before the night of the Ball we can practice for it. I´m sure that everyone will enjoy it"

After a while Seteth entered the class, accompanied by his sister Flayn.

"I see that you are already busy with the preparations. Keep the good job"

"I wanted to lend a hand since the beginning, but I had to resolve some matters with my brother. I apologize for arriving late, Professor"

"Don´t worry Flayn. I know that you have other responsibilities. I have made some decorations for the class" he said as he showed to her the figures he had made.

"Oh, that´s me! I´m so happy Professor!"

"The work could be polished, but I don´t have any particular reasons to criticize this particular work." Seteth said analyzing the work. "May I ask to keep it?"

"When the celebration ends you can keep it for yourself"

"Oh, thank you! I will certainly keep it"

"I will check the other classes" Seteth said as he left their class, although by the look of his eyes he appeared to be satisfied.

"I´m sure he liked the little figure of her sister. He certainly has a sister complex" Sothis said inside his head. "By the way, you didn´t make one for me. How disrespectful"

"If you want I can make one for you too"

"I was just kidding, but I appreciate your offering"

"Professor, please help me with this" Dorothea said, interrupting their conversation.

….

When they had finished with all the decorations, the classroom appeared to be a completely different one. The ornaments gave it a warmer appearance and everyone had done their best, although he could see a bit of disparity of the decoration motives depending on the part of the classroom where he looked at.

"The classroom has certainly changed. Even if there are some disparities between the decorations that´s the thing that makes it feel unique" Edelgard said next to him.

"I like it" he said with a fond smile.

"Me too" she smiled as she looked at her classmates.

"Good job everyone. The classroom has certainly changed its appearance, but don´t forget that we have to lend a hand with the decoration of the rest of the monastery"

"If we have spent most of the morning with just one class I can´t imagine how much time will take to decorate the whole monastery"

"You don´t have to worry, Linhardt. The members of the church and the rest of the students will lend a hand on that matter. Follow me"

…

"Now that there aren´t more things to do I guess that it´s the perfect time to practice some dances lessons" Edelgard said as they cleared the center of the class. They had spent most of the time decorating the halls of the monastery, but Seteth had allowed them to rest for the rest of the day in consideration for their efforts.

"Thank you for helping me"

"You don't have to thank me. It is a pleasure to lend you a hand, my Teacher. Besides, I must admit that it is really interesting to teach you something. It looks like our roles had changed" she said with a gentle smile. "Balls follow a strict structure since it is a formal dance. They are important within their nobility since it is an opportunity to make new contacts between the different houses."

"How long have you been dancing?"

"Since I was a young girl I´ve been dancing. As the future leader of the Adrestian Empire I had to learn not only military tactics but also the customs surrounding the court, although I can´t say that they were enjoyable experiences. However, we are not here to talk about that matter. I will make sure to turn you into a capable dancer"

"Dancing should be an option and not an obligation" Sothis said inside his head. "Why humans have to turn funny things into obligations? It destroys their purpose"

"You sound quite convinced"

"I have experience teaching how to dance, nothing more. As it will be your first time I will be taking the lead" she said as he approached him, placing one hand on his waist as she took his other hand with her free one. Her proximity brought with her the faint perfume he had grown fond of.

They slowly started to move around the empty classroom. His movements were clumsy at the beginning, but Edelgard was a patient professor and guided him during their first session. Observing her movements he started to memorize the pattern of the dance until he was confident that he wasn´t missing any steps, although his technique wasn´t completely perfect.

"You have done a great job, my Teacher" Edelgard said as she sat on one of the desks.

"I wasn´t able to take the lead yet"

"That is only natural. Practice makes the master and I´m sure you will get better the more you practice. You have already overcome one of the first steps. I promise you I will guide you through the rest of them. I´m confident that you will eventually turn into a great dancer" she said with a faint smile as she looked through one of the windows. "It feels like it was yesterday"

"What do you mean?"

"I´ve told you that I´ve danced since I was really young, but I haven´t told you about who was my mentor. One of my elder sisters was the one that taught me everything I know. She was quite a talented dancer and she was the envy of some of the most important houses of the empire, yet no one appears to remember her anymore"

"I´m sorry for the pain you had to endure Edelgard. Even if we can´t change the past that doesn´t mean that we can´t change the future. The future is up to us to decide"

"Your words speak the truth, my Teacher. I can´t dwell on the memories of the past if I want to make this world a better place to live, but that doesn´t mean I will ever forget the sacrifices that I´ve had to endure until now"

Hearing her words he realized that she really meant what she was saying. "Her willpower is really impressive" he thought.

"It really is, but even the strongest persons need a person to rely on from time to time. Otherwise the weight of duty would crush them" Sothis said.

"If I can help you in any way I will gladly do so, Edelgard"

"I will certainly consider it when the time comes, but you don´t have to worry about me. Even I can relax from time to time, at least at this time of the year. Has Dorothea told you anything about the play she wants to do?"

"The libretto is already prepared, but she says it is better to wait until the White Heron Cups ends"

"I must admit that I´m curious about the dancing movements that all of them are preparing to win the competition within the House"

"Did you want to take part into it?"

"I could have participated, but I must admit that acting as a jury it´s another interesting option. To be fair, I must admit that I´m quite enjoying my time in the monastery. I didn´t expect it to be like that"

Recalling the first time they met he couldn´t avoid smiling.

"You were quite serious back then"

"The same could be said about you, my Teacher. I guess that both of us have changed a bit, but I´m not displeased by the changes you have been experiencing. We should head to the canteen, before it gets too dark"

"I will accompany you"

Relocating the desks in their former places, they left the room behind them.

"It´s snowing" Edelgard said looking to the sky.

Finally, the first snows of the month had started to fall in the monastery territories, decorating its grounds with an ivory cloak.

"Do you like it?"

"I don´t mind it, but I don´t like when it gets too cold. It may be because I´m from the empire" she said as she adjusted her own clothes.

"I won´t let you be cold" he said, offering her his own cloak.

"I appreciate it, but I don´t wish you to fall ill just for my own wellbeing. We could share it if you want to" she said avoiding his gaze.

"That it´s a great idea"

Walking together covered by his own cloak they headed to the canteen. Even though he had been practicing with her it was now when the proximity with her was making his heart ache.

"Why don´t you confess your feelings? It is painfully obvious that you have feelings for her yet you are doing nothing about it" Sothis said, observing them from the stone throne he had grown used to see.

"Our worlds are completely different and she won´t be here for too long"

"In that case, why not following her? You have said it; the future is you to decide. You are not bound to be here for the rest of your life. You could always return to your mercenary life or do whatever you want if it is ok to you"

"You really worry about my wellbeing, but I´m not ready to do something like that"

"We are friends, right? It is only natural that I worry about you. I disagree with your opinion, but I will respect it. It´s not like you will be her Professor for the rest of her life"

"My Teacher, what are you thinking about? You have grown silent"

"It´s really nothing. I was just thinking about the future"

"About the future? What are your plans for it?" She said, looking directly at him, her amethyst eyes haunting his.

"I was wondering about what…" he couldn´t end his phrase as a snowball hit his face.

"Claude!"

"Sorry Teach, that snowball was meant for the imperial princess, but I lacked accuracy" Claude said as he prepared another snowball. The rest of the Golden Deer students were there. Hilda and Lysithea were making a snowman, Raphael, Ignatz and Leonie were throwing snowballs at each other, Marianne was adopting a praying manner and Lorenz had a disapproving look on his face.

"Then allow me to demonstrate" he said lending his cloak to Edelgard and preparing his own snowball. Avoiding the snowball aimed at him he tried to hit Claude, but he hit Raphael instead.

"You are too slow!" Claude laughed.

"You are the only one that could something like this, Claude" Edelgard said in a disapproving tone, although she was smiling.

"I smell a fight here!" Caspar roared as he approached them. "Oh, Professor, are you having a snowball battle? Let me join!"

In no time the students from the three houses started to assemble attracted by the shouts of Caspar as he fought alongside him against the Golden Deer students.

"It seems that you were the source of all this conflict, Claude" Dimitri said, approaching them.

"Your Highness, you shouldn´t come any closer if you don´t want to stain your beautiful hair with snow" Claude said with a teasing smile.

Looking at the situation unfolding around them, he couldn´t avoid smiling. "They are really enjoying their lives". When he was mercenary he had seen some of his comrades taking part in fights like that, but he didn´t understand why they did something like that. Now he was starting to understand.

"They are children after all, although some are younger than others" Sothis said as she saw Alois taking part into the fight too, accompanied by his father, whose smile grew wider the moment their eyes met.

Forgetting his worries about the future he joined them as equals. "It must be the magic of this month" he thought.

**12/7**

"Today is the day we will choose our representative for the White Heron Cup. I´m sure that all of you had done their best and I´m looking forward to seeing the result of your efforts" he said looking at all of them.

The classroom had been cleared of desks, except the one he used as a Professor. Edelgard, Linhardt and Bernadetta were sitting behind it while he was standing next to one of the columns accompanied by Monica and Lorenz. She had skipped most of the decoration of the monastery, but she had assured him she was completely recovered once again, although by the look of her face she appeared to be bored about the event she had to witness. Lorenz had said he wanted to witness Ferdinand´s acting and he didn´t have any reasons to oppose him.

"The first participant is Ferdinand" he announced. His words were accompanied by Lorenz´s clapping.

"I will show all of you the results of my practice!" he said, wearing an elegant red outfit with the symbol of the Aegir family on one of its sides.

Ferdinand elegantly moved around the center of the classroom as if he was the protagonist of an opera. His movements were fluid and his mannerisms were the typical of a noble, but some of his movements were a bit exaggerated. As he ended his play he threw a red rose to the jury, an action that was highly appraised by Lorenz.

"That was an impressive movement, Ferdinand"

"I am pleased to hear your kind words Lorenz. I hope that the jury holds the same feelings"

"Before we can make a final decision we should see the actuation of the rest of participants, Ferdinand. Please take a seat behind the scene."

The next one to participate was Petra. She had brought with her a small drum that hit furiously as she lively danced around the center of the class. Her energetic movements accompanied with her strong voice made him thought about hunting scenes. The strength of her voice was combined with a unique melody. "She is singing in her own language. I wonder what she is saying." When she had finished everyone had their eyes wide open, even Linhardt.

"It was really a unique show. What were you singing about?" Edelgard inquired.

"It is a song for the departed and those who will come after them. In Brigid we believe that death is not the end of our paths, but only a stop we have to do before continuing our paths. That´s why we don´t mourn the dead, but we celebrate their deaths, because their life continues in unknown lands"

"No matter what we think, Fódlan is just a tiny part of this world. Thank you for teaching me about it, Petra"

"The pleasure is mine!"

After Petra arrived Caspar.

"My dance´s title is Fists of fury. I will show all of you how great it is!"

In fact, Caspar´s dance was quite unique, although he wasn´t sure if he could name it as a dance. Caspar jumped and roared and moved his arms as if he was brawling against someone. His rhythm was energetic and he didn´t pause at all during his entire dance, so when he ended he needed a few seconds to catch his breath.

"What do you think about my dance?"

"It was quite…unique I guess" Edelgard said sighing.

"You are too aggressive!" Bernadetta cried, hiding behind Edelgard´s back.

"It sounded like you"

"Thank you for your support Linhardt!"

"I wasn´t complimenting you, though" Linhardt sighed.

"I guess that it´s the turn of the next participant. Hubert, please come in front of us"

"As you wish, Lady Edelgard" Hubert said approaching them. He was wearing a dark suit that matched with the golden ornaments he had on his shoulders, although his smile was the most sinister he had ever seen from him.

"This guy is scary" Sothis murmured inside his head and he couldn´t agree more with that.

Hubert moved around the center of the classroom as if he was planning to kill someone. His movements appeared to be coldly calculated and his eyes were strangely fixated on him, sending veiled threats. When he had ended, everyone remained silent for a moment, until Edelgard cleared her throat.

"You haven´t changed a bit Hubert"

"Even if I lack the charm of Lady Edelgard that doesn´t mean that I´m not able to dance and fulfill my duty at the same time."

"You don´t have charisma at all Hubert"

"The same could be said about you, Ferdinand. Even if you are able to dance, your dancing style is excessively exaggerated. Like a peacock" he chuckled.

"How disrespectful. At least my dancing style doesn´t depend on others"

"Keep calm, both of you" Edelgard sighed. "We haven´t finished this yet. I´m sure that Flayn and Dorothea want their own opportunity to shine on stage. Come in Flayn"

Flayn had chosen a simple outfit that matched with the color of her eyes. As she danced around the center of the classroom he had to admit that she danced quite well. Her moves were elegant and slow, as if she was dancing on the surface of a lake.

"Even if she dances well I´m sure his brother wouldn´t let anyone dance with her"

Recalling Seteth´s face, he couldn´t agree more with Sothis´s comment.

"I hope that everyone found this dance of their liking, it took me some time to practice it" Flayn said with a genuine smile.

"You did a good job" Edelgard nodded.

"You aren´t scary at least"

"I´m more interested in your crest, but I guess that your dance was good enough"

"Well now is the time for our last participant, Dorothea please come in"

As she was told Dorothea approached them. She wasn´t wearing her usual hat and her hair was loosely falling on her shoulders. With a wink to the judges she started dancing in front of them as she sang a popular song.

"I know the lyrics of this song, yet her voice make them look more tragic" he thought as she moved around the emptied class. Her movements were completely synchronized with the tone of the voice and in a few moments he was completely focused on them.

"This girl is really good" Sothis said, completely focused on her movements, sitting on her stone throne.

"She really is"

As the song approached to an end she slowly approached the desk of the jury and as the last syllables of the song left her mouth she bowed before them, leaving everyone speechless.

"That was really beautiful, Dorothea" Edelgard said, breaking the silence.

"Thank you for your kind words, Edie. I really did my best"

"Quite impressive. I don´t feel like sleeping anytime soon"

"Really Linhardt? Coming from you, that sounds really impressive"

"Your dance was incredible. I couldn´t stop looking at you"

"Thank you for your kind words too, Bernie. I´m happy that someone as cute as you enjoyed my dance" Dorothea said with a charming smile, making Bernadetta blush.

"Now that everyone has showed everything they had it is time to deliberate" Edelgard announced.

The three of them started talking between them as the participants awaited the results. A few moments later the jury stood up and looked at the participants.

"The winner of this competition is Dorothea. I hope that you can win the White Heron Cup" Edelgard said with a wide smile.

"Oh, thank you so much Edie. I´m really lucky! I promise to give my best!"

"Defeat? How could something like this happen to me? Impossible"

"Reality it is sometimes unpleasant, Ferdinand" Hubert said while chuckling.

"If you do the same in the White Heron Cup, we will win for sure!" Caspar roared.

"If you need my help, I will do whatever possible to assist you. It was really beautiful"

"Thank you for your offering, Petra. I think I can include some things from Brigid in my dance. I loved how it was so energetic!"

"Well, one thing less to worry about" Linhardt yawned.

"I´m sure we will win this competition. Give your best shot, Dorothea"

"If you said it like that Professor I can´t avoid giving my best. We will win this, together" Dorothea said with a wide smile.

…..

**12/10**

The gardens of the monastery were deserted as Byleth walked through them. He had been to the greenhouse to pick one of the pitcher plants he had planted, although he wasn´t surprised to see no one. The last few days the winds had grown colder and the fallen snow was quickly piling up, although the members of the Church were keeping everything in order. The moment he entered the main hall he could feel the sudden change in temperature. Torches were lit and a small scenario had been built for the White Heron Cup, which was taking place that day.

"Hello Byleth, are you already waiting for the little tournament we will be having here?" Alois greeted him with his usual smile.

"I was looking for my students" He was surprised to see the monastery so empty. The canteen was filled with students of the lower levels of the monastery but he had only had come across with Monica, which was spending her free time with some of the students of the canteen.

"They must be busy preparing the last things for the tournament. It´s really an important event in this monastery" Manuela said with a dreamy look. "I would like to take part into it too. What a pity!"

"I will search for them. I will see both of you later" he promised as he left them behind.

He decided to head to the students dormitories; the moment he arrived he knocked on Dorothea´s room.

"Come in!"

As he entered the room he was surprise to see all the girls of the Black Eagles there. Dorothea was combing her hair and she was wearing a red dress that revealed her shoulders. She was also wearing a bracelet with exotic symbols written on it. The makeup she was using made him think about the company of actors that from time to time performed in the squares of the great cities. Petra was drawing one of Brigid´s typical drawing under one of her eyes while Bernadetta was spending her time sewing. Edelgard was sitting on one of the chairs looking through the window of the room until she realized he had arrived.

"Hello Professor! As you see we are a bit busy with the final preparations for the cup" Dorothea greeted him with one of her most charming smiles.

"Where did you get a dress like that?"

"I bought it for her. It comes from one of the most prestigious dressmakers of Enbarr. Hubert brought it here for us"

"Hubie was very nice; even if the weather had turned harsher he arrived in no time here again. I´ve decided to incorporate some additional elements to my dance to make sure that we impress all of the judges, even Manuela. She is fond of my dancing style, but I would like to impress her in a day like this"

"I´m looking forward it"

"I´m happy to hear that coming from you. I will make sure that we win. After all, everyone is giving their best. Do you know anything about the participants of the other houses?"

"I´m not certain about it, but I think that in the case of the Golden Deer Hilda is going to take part in the tournament. I heard her talking about it at the canteen the other day"

"Hilda? She is going to be a worthy opponent, but don´t worry Professor. I´ve quite the experience in this type of battles" she giggled.

"By the way Bernadetta, happy birthday" he said handing her one of the pitcher plants he had been taking care at the greenhouse of the monastery.

"Oh, thank you. I really appreciate it. Is it one of the pitcher plants we were taking care of the last time we were at the greenhouse together?"

"It is. I hope it is of your liking"

"Thank you Professor, I will take care of it from now on" Bernadetta said with a shy smile.

"It is a present for your efforts for leaving you room"

"The Professor is right about that. You have changed bit a bit and I´m pleased to see those changes" Edelgard said looking at her.

"That´s because you are always training with us, Professor, but since you have granted me this present, I will forgive you for today"

"Professor, could you look for the others? I want to see them all when I get to the stage"

"Of course, Dorothea, see you later"

"I will accompany you, my Teacher"

"See you later Edie, Professor!"

Closing the door behind them he walked through the aisles accompanied by her. Apart from her usual uniform she was wearing a scarf to fight against the lower temperatures, although the torches were keeping the cold at bay.

"It looks like winter has finally arrived to the monastery" Edelgard commented as they walked through the deserted aisles.

"Are you feeling uncomfortable by the cold?"

"It´s not something of my liking, but as long as I stay inside it is far more tolerable. Everyone looks very excited for the White Heron Cup. I didn´t expect it to be that popular"

"I guess that it being a competition attracts a lot of students"

"It may be, since even Caspar was willing to take part into it" she smiled. "Where do you think they are?"

"I didn´t see them at the canteen, but they could be there. The place is crowded with students from the lower levels. I´ve only seen Monica there"

"Monica…She appeared to have grown fond of some of those students. Don´t you find it surprising?"

Recalling her conversation with Hilda, he couldn´t avoid feeling there was something strange with her.

"Hilda knew her before her disappearance and told me she had a reserved personality, although she appears to be more outgoing now. She thinks it may be because of her trauma"

"It could be that. I will check on her later. The fact that she had been skipping so many classes is disturbing" Edelgard said looking through one of the windows as if she was thinking about something else.

They finally found the rest of them at the main hall. The place had started to fill with students from the different houses. Caspar was playing a board game against Sylvain, while Ferdinand and Lorenz were talking next to one of the doors. Linhardt was sleeping on one of the tables and Hubert was sitting alone next to one of the corners of the room. The stage was covered with heavy curtains that didn´t allow to see anything behind them, but he knew there was an auxiliary entrance behind it.

"Hello Professor, I wonder who is going to win" Ferdinand said as he noticed the both of them.

"If both of us were rivals it would be pretty obvious that the fight to choose the best of us would be a harsh one, but since we aren´t taking part into it, I´m not certain about the outcome of the tournament anymore"

"You would have really been a worthy opponent, Lorenz. Your knowledge and your mannerisms are really similar to mine"

"Great minds think alike I guess" Lorenz laughed.

"My Teacher, we should enter the room" Edelgard said while sighing.

Taking a seat next to her they waited as the room started to fill with different students. When he saw Petra and Bernadetta arriving he knew that it was about time that the White Heron Cup started. The murmurs of the students suddenly stopped the moment that Manuela, Alois and Shamir appeared through the main hall.

"Hello everyone! In a few moments the main event of this evening will take place. I hope that everyone is prepared for it. As you know I will be one of the judges for this competition. I have quite an experience regarding dancing so acting as a judge is only a natural task for me" Alois said with a wide smile.

"I´m Manuela, the second judge of this competition. I´m looking forward the performances of my dear students. I´m sure that this evening will be great and a day that most of us will never forget" she said with a charming smile.

"I´m Shamir. I´m a judge too" Shamir said in her usual serious tone.

"Well, now the presentations had been already made, it is time to prepare for the main event of this evening. Greet our first participant!"

As the curtains lifted he could see the first participant advancing to the front of the stage. The first one to arrive was Ingrid, the Blue Lion student. He had never seen her with so much makeup, her cheeks of a beautiful pink color although he suspected that it could be because of embarrassment. Her hair was carefully combed and she was wearing a navy blue dress with a silver lion drawn on it. She started to slowly move around the stage while she was cheered by Annette and Mercedes, which appeared to be the responsible of Ingrid´s presence on stage. Her movements reminded him of the dances he had seen in the north when he was travelling with his father as a mercenary.

"I´ve seen that style in the lands of Faerghus. I guess that it is an appropriate option for her since she is a Blue Lions student" Edelgard commented next to him.

When the dance was finished she was cheered by most of the students, but especially by Annette and Mercedes. Hearing the ovations of the student he could see that Ingrid´s face was getting even redder before she ran away from the stage.

"That was quite a performance" Alois laughed as the audience grew silent again. "But this is not over yet. Let´s welcome our next participant with the same ovation we have done before!"

As he said it Hilda appeared at stage. She was wearing a shorter dress than Ingrid´s that revealed part of her legs and cleavage. With a wink to the audience she started to dance with energetic movements he had never seen when he had trained with her.

"I guess that regarding hobbies, everyone can really give their best" he thought.

Looking around he could see that a lot of students were fixated by Hilda´s sensual movements, mainly the men. Sylvain was with his mouth wide open, a peculiar look on his eyes before he was punched in the stomach by an Ingrid that had just returned to the main room.

When he looked at Edelgard he realized she was observing him.

"Has something happened, Edelgard?"

"Nothing in particular, her style is really audacious, I guess" she said as she looked to the stage again.

When Hilda had finished dancing she was cheered by lots of students, one of the students of the lower levels even gave her a bouquet of flowers.

With a wide smile she left the stage behind her.

"This year is atypically competitive" Alois laughed. "We are going to have a difficult decision to make, but before we have to make it, let´s greet our last participant!"

The moment Dorothea appeared on stage everyone grew silent. With a confident smile she slowly started to dance across the stage as her voice accompanied her movements. The moment the rhythm of her voice changed she started to move faster catching everyone´s attention. He tried to understand what she was saying, but he realized that she was speaking in a different language.

"Could it be that she is using the lyrics of Petra´s song?"

The combination of two different dancing styles was having their effect on the public. All of the students were focused on the movements of Dorothea across the stage. Sylvain was with his mouth wide open again, but he wasn´t punched by Ingrid since she was too absorbed by Dorothea´s performance. As the end of the performance approached her voice grew higher, ending with a climax of movement and music. The auditorium was left completely silent for a few seconds until a roar of voices started to cheer her name at the same time. With a smile on her face Dorothea bowed before them before leaving the stage.

"Wow that was really impressive!" Alois said. "Now it is time for us the judges to deliberate. Manuela, Shamir, come here"

The three judges stood before the stage talking between the three of them for several minutes. When they stopped everyone was already impatient to hear the results.

"This one has been a real difficult decision. I´ve never seen such a level and quality in all my years at the monastery. This year we really have a great talented group of students"

"My vote goes for Hilda" Her movements had strength I´ve never seen something like that in any dances before" Shamir with her usual serious tone.

"My vote goes for Dorothea" Manuela announced. "The combination of voice and dance was something that completely moved my heart. Even if we don´t understand the meaning of the words, that doesn´t mean that we cannot enjoy such a combination of styles. It was really original."

"Well, it looks like it is my turn to resolve this draw. My vote goes for Dorothea too. In all my dancing years I´ve never seen something like that. Nevertheless, I´m really impressed by the results of this year. So the winner is… Dorothea!"

The moment that Alois announced the winner a roar could be heard across all the room. Looking at the Black Eagles students he could see that they were extremely happy, especially Caspar, which was shouting with all the strength of his lungs as if he was the winner of the competition. Looking back to Edelgard he saw she was smiling too.

"I guess that we already have something to celebrate" she laid looking at all of them.

….

"That dance was really impressive Dorothea. It was like a fight, but elegant. I don´t know if you get what I´m saying. It was really cool" Caspar said, scratching his head. They had returned to the Black Eagles´s classroom to hold a small celebration of Dorothea´s victory.

"It was a really unique dance. When I saw Petra dancing in front of us I knew I wanted to learn about it to include it in my dancing"

"I´m glad I was able to help you, Dorothea. You spoke really well too" Petra said with a wide smile. "In no time you could travel to Brigid without any problems"

"I will certainly go one day. I´m looking forward to it"

"I´m happy to hear that. Of course, everyone is invited to come too!"

"Oh, like a school trip? That could be fun" Caspar said, although he seemed a bit troubled with Petra´s genuine smile.

"Brigid is too far away, I doubt that the monastery would allow us to do something like that. Besides, it would be especially troublesome" Linhardt sighed.

"We have already done a promise to meet each other at the monastery after five years, how about promising a trip like that? What do you think Edie?"

"In 5 years we don´t know what kind of responsibilities we will be holding, but I´m not opposed to going on trips together from time to time, although we don´t know what kind of future awaits to us" she said smiling, although he realized her eyes were hiding some sadness. "Is that ok for you, Professor?"

"It certainly is. I´m looking forward to meeting all of you again"

"Seeing you smile like that…you have really changed, my Teacher"

"If you smiled more often I´m sure that you will melt a lots of hearts with your smile, even at times like this" Dorothea assured him with a smile. "By the way, this was a reward for winning the Heron Cup Tournament" she said handling him a small figure of a dancer made in an ivory material. It was highly detailed and at its base was the name of Dorothea and the class room which she was part of. "I don´t mind putting it here for the decoration of the classroom, since this victory was thanks to all of us. I´ve also received this" she said as she handed him a small bag full of coins. "It isn´t a lot of money, but since you are spending so much money on us I want to return the favor with something I have earned with my efforts"

"Thank you Dorothea, I will make sure that I give it a good use. Feel free to rest for the next few days"

"Thank you, Professor. After I have checked the libretto I will give it to all of you. Even if most of us are amateurs I want to make sure that the people of Remire can end this month with a smile on their face"

"Understood"

After spending some time with his students, they started to leave to head to their respective rooms. The first one to leave was Monica. She appeared to be spending less time with Edelgard, although that sudden change of behavior was strange to say the less. After making sure that they hadn´t forgotten any belongings inside the classroom he closed the door behind him and started to head to his room.

"Oh Byleth, how are you doing?"

"Hello Father" he said as he approached him, he was accompanied by a man wearing red and black clothes. "A cardinal" he thought.

"It is a pleasure to meet you once again, Jeralt´s son" The cardinal said with a fond smile. "Although I am not sure that you remember me"

"He is Aelfric, he was a dear friend of your mother. He told me he came across with you in one of his trips to the monastery"

"Now I remember, I´m sorry I didn´t remember your name"

"No need to apologize, Byleth. It is a pleasure to meet with both of you again. Seeing your face I know that her sacrifice wasn´t in vain" Aelfric said with a sad smile.

"It certainly wasn´t" Jeralt said rubbing Byleth´s hair. "By the way, Aelfric, what are you doing here? I know that the cardinals are quite busy. Are there any troubles in your region?"

"Luckily we haven´t found any particular problems, although it worries me the conflict with the Western Church. I have the feeling that we are living unusual times, although if we have someone like you to protect the monastery I am sure that we do not have to worry about any problems"

"You really are confident about my abilities, but no one is invincible" Jeralt laughed. "Since you are here, how about we visit Sitri´s grave? I´m sure she would be pleased to see the three of us there"

"I will certainly accompany you, Jeralt"

"I will go too, Father"

The wind was freezing, but he was used to that kind of weather due to his expeditions to the northern territories. Walking next to his father he thought about his mother. He didn´t have any memories about her appearance, but both his father and Jeralt said he was very similar to her. "I wonder how she was when she was alive"

"That´s something we will never find out" Sothis said inside his head. "Even if I have the power to control the pass of time to an extent, that doesn´t mean that my power is limitless, although I must admit that I´m curious about it too"

"You are right about that, it´s only up to my imagination"

"By the way, your little student did really well. I was really impressed by her skill"

"I thought you were sleeping, since you were completely silent"

"The fact that I´m not talking to you doesn´t mean that I´m sleeping. It looks like we have arrived"

The graveyard had an ivory mantle of snow, but none of the graves were completely hidden by it.

"Even in winter this place has its own beauty" Jeralt said, caressing the grave of his wife.

"The seasons of our world represent the cycle of our lives. In winter life appears to arrive to an end, but no matter how much time it takes, a new spring will come to cover the world in flowers of life"

"Snow and flowers. Winter and spring. You really say some deep things, Aelfric" Jeralt laughed, patting his back. "I couldn´t have said something like that. Talking about winter, do you remember that time when both of you were in the gardens of the monastery?"

"A blizzard had fallen the previous day and there was so much snow that half my body was covered by it. Since all the paths were covered in snow I didn´t realize I was walking into a hole covered by the snow and I fell into it"

"I came as fast as I could when I heard Sitri´s screams. When I picked you up you were completely covered in snow. You looked like one of those snowmen that children make when snow falls"

"When Sitri realized I wasn´t in danger she laughed and smiled. It must have been quite a sighting"

"It was really comical. How about we make a snowman for her? I´m sure she would like it" he then look at him. "Will you lend a hand to your old man on this?"

"Of course, father"

Helping him, they started to make a snowman next to her mom´s grave. Using their hand they shaped the figure to make it more refined than the snowmen made by the children at the monastery. After a few moments their snowman was completed.

"It will guard her against the winds of winter" Jeralt said as he fondly looked at her grave. Searching in one of his pockets he placed a small rose on the tomb.

"I am sure she will be pleased to see it. It is an honor to have met you once again Jeralt. I will pray to assure that the Goddess bestows her blessing on her"

"Pray then, you are a cardinal after all. I´m sure that you know more prayers than I"

Father and son stood in silent as Aelfric prayed for his mother. As he finished with it the winds appeared to momentarily stop.

"I guess that she had heard us" Jeralt smiled as he looked to the sky. "We should return to a warmer place. Let´s have a cup of wine or beer together"

"It will be a pleasure, Jeralt"

Accompanying both of them he entered the main building of the monastery. Some soldiers were passing by, but apart from that most of the building appeared to be deserted. After they had arrived to the room of his father, he uncorked a bottle of wine, pouring its content in the cups of his desk.

"I have heard worrying reports from the territories around the monastery"

"I´m sure you are referring to the Tragedy of Remire. Last month was really a tough one. The villagers were killing each other and appeared to be influenced by dark magic. We couldn´t save everyone, but at least we killed some of their perpetrators"

"Did you find anything interesting when you travelled to the village accompanied by Rhea?"

"Nothing in particular, apart from fragments of the scythe the Death Knight was wielding"

"I used it against Solon, but it was destroyed by a magic explosion"

"The Death Knight, Solon? I am afraid that I cannot understand to the full extent the meaning of these words"

"Explaining everything will take some time, but basically this year has been really strange. The Death Knight appears to be Jeritza, an instructor that worked here for some time. Solon was Tomas, the librarian. Both of them had taken part in some of the strange events that had happened at this monastery, but we don´t really know to what extent they have been involved with it"

"The fact that something like that can happen near the monastery is really worrying" Aelfric said looking at the content of his own cup of wine.

"There is something fishy about it, but that´s all that I can say about it right now. However, I don´t think you will have any problems in your return"

"I really hope so"

Their conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door. When Jeralt opened the door, Seteth appeared in front of them.

"Good evening Jeralt, Aelfric. Rhea wants to meet with both of you" he then looked at him. "I heard that your student was the winner of this edition of the White Heron Cup. Congratulations"

"Thanks"

"Really? It was a pity that I missed that, although I´m sure that Alois will be explaining it to me tomorrow. By the way Seteth, is really that necessary to do such an amount of paperwork"

"Even if you are the leader of the knights it is your responsibility to keep the reports and informs up to date. Furthermore, since you are the captain of the Knight´s of Seiros I cannot think of someone more suitable for such a task"

"I knew that you were going to say something like that, but I had to try at least" he sighed. "Good night, we will talk later and congratulations for the victory of your student"

"Farewell Byleth. I hope that our paths cross again soon" Aelfric said with a faint smile before leaving accompanied by Seteth and Jeralt.

"This was a really interesting day" Sothis said yawning "But now it´s time to end it. You should rest too. You don´t want to worry your dear students, don´t you?"

"You are right" he said as he headed to his room. The winds howling once again outside the building, as if they were crying about something.


	44. Past and present

**12/15 Ethereal Moon**

"So you were the one behind all the attacks to my properties. The fact that someone as pitiful as you could so something like that… However, the blade of justice will finally have its fair share of blood. Executioner, do what you must to do" The Count ordered, looking at him.

"What I did was for the people. The same people you were willing to murder with your rule and taxes"

"Nonsense, a filthy individual like you does not have the right to oppose my rule. Everyone who defies me must be crushed without hesitation"

As he approached, he looked at her. Despite her chains she was still showing determination in her eyes, a look that was piercing his.

"I knew that this moment would come the moment you became the right arm of the Count. Was it all a lie? Was it an illusion of a time when you were what you used to be?"

"You have to be more expressive, Edie! This line is extremely important, although I must admit that the look of your eyes was quite impressive!"

"I will do my best next time" Edelgard sighed, as she adjusted the chains that surrounded her arms.

"Dorothea, I must admit that I´m not confident with the role of the Count for this play. It is completely opposite to my own values"

"I know that Ferdie, you don´t have to worry about that. When I worked at the Opera I didn´t enjoy all the roles I had to play, but the moment you enter the stage you aren´t yourself anymore, but the role you have to play. Don´t worry, I know you will do a great job"

"If you say it like that I feel obliged to comply, although I think that this role is better for someone like Hubert"

"Thank you for your compliment, but each of us has their own role for this little play" Hubert sinisterly chuckled.

"You only need to be more expressive. In a few days I´m sure we will get everything working as expected. I can´t wait to see the reaction of our public"

"I promise to do my best" Edelgard said as she approached him at the small stage they had prepared for the rehearsal. "However, I must admit that I didn´t expect you to choose a play like this"

"You mean that you expected a more typical chivalry story when I talked about my plans for a play. I´m fond of this story, since it isn´t typical the slightest, yet I´ve heard it plenty of times since I was a young girl. I´m sure that everyone will enjoy it if we pour our soul in it. Until the 20th of this month we have enough time to have it well prepared"

The energy of her words had its effects on everyone; even Linhardt was more awakened than usual. It was heavily snowing outside, but the torches and the magic fires inside the classroom kept the cold at bay.

"What I want to practice is the battle part. It is my favorite part of this story!" Caspar roared, moving his training axe dangerously close to Linhardt´s head.

"Calm down Caspar. You almost hit me now"

"Oh, sorry"

"I can read and write, but remembering all these words it´s going to be difficult, but I will do my best for you, Dorothea"

"Don´t worry Petra, I´m sure you will be doing your best. With your energy there is nothing to fear" Dorothea said with a charming smile, she then looked to the rest of them. "Rest for a while. We´ll start again in five minutes"

"So troublesome and tiring" Linhardt yawned. "Well, at least I don´t have much to say"

Byleth took a seat and looked to his surroundings. All the Black Eagle students were taking part in Dorothea´s idea, Flayn included. Most of them were doing their best, although Linhardt appeared to be napping from time to time and Monica was more bored than excited about the rehearsal part.

"It surely is an interesting idea" Edelgard said, sitting next to him. "I must admit that I didn´t expect to do this play, but I don´t regret it"

"I´m sure that everyone will enjoy it" he assured her. During their rehearsal Manuela and Seteth had arrived to check how they were doing. Manuela was particularly excited about the rehearsals and she had also made various tips for the preparation of the play. Seteth had asked for the script of the play and appeared to be pleased with the role that Flayn had.

"I can´t really get him. She is going to be safe. It is a play, not a battlefield" Sothis sighed inside his head.

"My Teacher, what are you thinking about?"

"Oh, nothing really. I´m sure that everyone is doing their best"

"Talking about it, in ten days the ball will take place. We will need to practice more to give the best impression to the rest of the students. You have improved a lot, but there are some things that need to be polished"

"We can practice after this rehearsal. Look, Dorothea is calling for us" he said as he prepared to assume his role again.

….

"Good job everyone, keep like this and we will be praised by everyone"

"You sounded like the Professor, Dorothea"

"I know" she giggled. "Let´s practice as usual tomorrow at the same time here"

Everyone started to leave until they were the two of them alone.

"My Techer, I will return in a moment. Move the desks to make some space for our practice in the meantime"

"Understood. Leave it to me"

As she left he started to prepare the class for their dance practice. He could see through the windows how white the world had turned with the endless fall of the snow. Winter had arrived and appeared to be willing to stay. Some of the knights had been sent to the surroundings of the monastery to make sure that the roads remained safe for those who were heading to it. Leading the patrols was his father. Despite the hazardous conditions he knew that he would be alright, since it wasn´t the first time they had to deal with weather conditions like this.

"Hello Professor. Am I interrupting something?"

"Not at all, please come in"

Lorenz entered the room, accompanied by Sylvain. Both of them had already built up a reputation in the monastery for the wrong reasons. He already had a bunch of letters on his desk complaining of his methods for approaching girls, especially those of Lorenz.

"How can I help both of you?"

"We were discussing how the best way to seduce a woman was. I think that my methods are worth of praising, but he insists that he has the upper hand on this matter"

"You are just insistent, Lorenz. You should accept that you aren´t invincible since I´ve seen your advances being refused more than once" Sylvain laughed, adopting a carefree position.

"That is just nonsense. As a member of House Gloucester it is my duty to practice with every chance I have. The conquests that take more time are the ones that are most worth it, in my humble opinion"

"In your humble opinion? That´s something I wouldn´t say about you" he laughed as he looked at him. "Since regarding this matter you are the most impartial person we could think of we have come here to hear your opinion about which one of us is the best seducer"

"Are they really asking you something like this?" Sothis said, sitting on her stone throne. "They must be really full of themselves if they consider themselves the bests on that matter. I don´t know why, but most people appear to treat you in a more casual way that compared with the other professors. It must be the age difference. Well, what´s your answer?" she sighed.

"Both of you are enemy of the women" The moment he said those words both of them appeared to be shocked, especially Lorenz, although the effect was diluted by Sothis´ laughter inside his head.

"Those are quite the words, Professor, but I am sure they are based on rumors filled with ill will. There is no way that my actions could be considered hostile against women. I swear it by my honor as a noble"

"Tsk. You really got hurt in the pride, don´t you? I must admit that from time to time I´ve had some problems, but nothing too serious. I know when there is no possibility to succeed. The one who is to blame is Lorenz"

"I have received complaints from both of you, especially you, Lorenz"

"That is clear a rumor born out of envy! I refuse to accept the content of those accusations against my honor" Lorenz said, his cheeks increasingly red.

"That isn´t just my opinion on this matter. I´m only telling you the information that I´ve received about the whereabouts of both of you"

"And here I thought my advances were more appreciated" Sylvain sighed. "Well, at least Ingrid hasn´t told anything strange recently. The last time I had a scene was at the canteen and I don´t want that to happen again"

"Even if you have received those reports I beg to have an opportunity to clean my honor. A stain like that could ruin my reputation and I cannot allow such dire risk to happen as the heir of House Gloucester"

"Why are both of you so interested in seducing women?" It was clear that they appeared to be competing between them, but he wasn´t sure about the reasons behind it.

"As you know, my duty as a noble is to assure that my bloodline continues. Continuing it is really an easy task. However, I do not only aspire to continue it, but to improve it. My advances are just a way to evaluate possible spouses that could bring a new age of enlightenment to House Gloucester. Continuing the bloodline is as important as politics and military strength for a noble. That is what is expected of me"

"I didn´t expect to agree with Lorenz on something, but I guess that he has a point about what he had just said" Sylvain said, his usual smile nowhere to be seen. "The nobility of our world is based not only on the wealth of the noble House itself, but also in the presence of Crests within the family. Being a noble doesn´t mean that you will get a guaranteed Crest the moment that you are born, but it really boosts the possibilities of getting one and marriage is a golden opportunity for most women to climb the social ladder, since giving birth to a Crest wielder means that they have their subsistence guaranteed. I wasn´t the one to make the advances when I was younger, but most women that approached me had done so with the hope of getting a better position. In that case, why not having some fun myself too, or is it wrong?" he said looking at him, a shadow of anger behind his usual relaxed eyes. "You are really lucky Professor, you don´t have to worry about things like this. I could say that I hate you" he said laughing, as if he didn´t really mean what he had just said.

"The society of Fódlan is certainly dysfunctional if most nobles are basing their way of life in the reasoning of these two. Humans really enjoy overcomplicating things" Sothis said, while sighing.

"Now that you have heard our reasons it is time to repay my honor. I have just thought about a good idea to defend it. I defy you to a trial by combat, Professor, I will proof to everyone that I am not the person that those dreadful rumors had described"

"Are you seriously meaning what you say, Lorenz?" asked a surprised Sylvain. "Haven´t you seen him fighting? He is going to crush you"

"I am not afraid since I am a talented fighter too. However, I expected that you would say something like that. As expected of someone who lacks the necessary courage to protect his own honor. You are free to witness our battle from a safe place"

"You are really full of yourself. I don´t really need to practice to defeat someone like you. You will regret provoking me"

"Less talking and more figthing. A three way battle then. In two days I will proof to the entire monastery that my honor remains intact and that these rumors are baseless"

"Why do you have to fight if you don´t have anything to proof? This situation is really ridiculous" Sothis sighed. "However, if you let them be, the problem won´t be resolved so defeat them. I don´t want to hear this chattering again"

"Understood"

"You really seen confident, Professor. I suppose that you think that you can defeat both of us easily, but an excess of confidence could proof to be your undoing. We will fight in the place where tournaments are held. I am looking forward to our fight. Be prepared for every possible outcome" Lorenz said departing with a confident look on his face.

"He really gets on my nerves" Sylvain said sighing, looking at him. "I don´t mind if you give him a good beating, but be easy on me, Professor. I want to keep this face of mine as intact as possible"

"That wouldn´t be fair"

"I expected a response like that. I will do my best then. Ugh, I don´t know how we ended like this, I really should have kept quiet about this" Sylvain said mumbling as he left behind the classroom.

It didn´t take too much time until Edelgard returned. When she returned the center of the class was already cleared.

"Sorry for making you wait. I´ve seen that Lorenz and Sylvain were leaving the class" she said as she closed the door behind her.

"They wanted to hear my opinion about which one of them was the most charming regarding women. Lorenz has defied me to combat him in two days and Sylvain is going to part into it too"

"The fact that they asked you such a ridiculous question embarrasses me" Edelgard sighed. "You shouldn´t have agreed to do something like that. It is just a waste of resources, they won´t change their behavior by their own will"

"At least I have to try"

"I hope for the best of outcomes. Let´s start the practice then. This time I will let you take the lead. Show me how much you remember" she said as he approached him.

They danced across the class as the snow continued to fall outside, but he was completely focused on the steps he had to do. Even if she had told him to take the lead he knew that she was indirectly correcting some of his movements as they continued to dance.

"You are doing a good job, my Teacher. You only need to be more fluid with your steps. I´m confident that you won´t have any problems the night of the ball"

"That´s because you are teaching me"

He tried to follow her advice the best he could as they approached the small stage that they had prepared for the rehearsals of Dorothea´s play. Looking at her, he couldn´t avoid faintly smiling as he looked at the face he had grown fond of.

"I´m glad to see you smiling more often, my Teacher. I´m sure that…" she couldn´t finish her phrase since her feet tripped with one box that was negligently placed in front of the scenery, making her lose her balance, dragging him with her.

"Are you alright, Edelgard?" he worriedly asked as he saw the hurtful expression on her face, ignoring a light pain he was feeling on his face.

"I didn´t expect to trip over something like that. I think I´ve hit my head, but it isn´t anything to worry about it. I apologize for my clumsiness" she said avoiding his gaze.

"Let me check it" he said as he touched her head from behind, caressing the affected area, her sweet scent flooding his mind.

"You shouldn´t worry about the wellbeing of others when you are the one to be hurt" she said gently touching the area next to one of his eyebrows. "You have some blood there" she said as she cherished the area for him.

He felt a strange sensation inside him, a combination of pain and pleasure, but his mind could only think about her, his eyes focused on hers as he continued cherishing her silky hair. They were so close that the mist of their breath was one. Even if both of them were silent he didn´t mind. He was afraid that the moment words left his mouth the moment would be spoiled.

"Byleth…" Edelgard said with her mouth slightly opened, her voice a mere whisper as her hand slightly moved his face closer to her.

"Yes, Edelgard?" he was starting to feel dizzy with the strange sensations he was experiencing inside his body, his eyes looking alternatively to her eyes and mouth.

"I…I…"

Her words were interrupted by someone furiously knocking the door.

"Why is the class closed? Damn it! I really need one of my gantlets for a fight I have in an hour!"

"No need to shout Caspar, there is always a reason to it"

As he heard the voice of his students he returned to his senses and helped an extremely red Edelgard to get up again. As he approached the door his mind was still lost in all the things that had just happened.

"Oh, Professor. I didn´t expect to see you here"

"It is my class after all. Are you picking a fight again?"

"Your hearing abilities are really impressive! Don´t worry I will be taking the victory this time"

"No impressive at all since you are always shouting" Linhardt sighed. "I forgot something too inside the classroom, but since I saw it closed I thought to come again tomorrow when I came across with Caspar" Linhardt said as he noticed Edelgard. "Oh, Edelgard. I didn´t expect to see you here. What were you doing here?"

"She is giving me some dancing lessons to prepare for the night of the ball"

"We thought that closing the doors would be better to practice since there is still snow falling outside" Edelgard said with her usual tone, although the tip of her ears was still red.

"Oh, I see. Thank you for taking care of the Professor. It would be tiresome if I were the one to practice with him." Linhardt said as he looked at him. "I don´t mean to offend you, by the way"

"Don´t worry"

"Well, now that I have my gantlets I will certainly win. See you later Professor, everyone!" Caspar shouted as he ran to his fight.

"He is really full of energy. If he would apply that energy to his studies" Lindhardt said as he picked a book decorated with all kind of Crests.

"What are you reading Linhardt?"

"It´s just a book about Crests, Professor. I have recently become interested with Cethleann´s Crest and I thought I would give it a deeper analysis. Professor Hanneman has been kind enough to give me one of the books of his private collection and I want to use my time the best I can. Now, if you forgive me" he said, leaving the room.

As he left silence fell between the two of them. He was about to speak, but Edelgard was the first to talk.

"I think that we had enough for today. I apologize for the incident that happened before" she said as she adjusted her cloak, before leaving the room without looking back.

As he saw her leaving the class, he couldn´t avoid feeling a bit of sadness inside him.

"It is a pity that those two appeared. Things were so interesting. What a pity" Sothis complained inside his head.

"It´s really strange when you are observing, yet you remain silent"

"I´ve told you many times before. I don't want to spoil those moments you have with the little Princess. However, I wanted to talk with you about something"

"About what?"

"I´ve been thinking about the place where you went on your first expedition with your students. It´s name was Za…Zana…"

"Zanado?" he asked as he recalled the ruins of a civilization that appeared to be gone a long time ago.

"Correct! I can´t explain it, but my thoughts appeared to be attracted to that place, I wonder why. Since the place is close enough to the monastery, how about we do a little trip to it? I promise you it won´t take us so long"

"I don´t have any problem with that. I will prepare my equipment then" he said as he headed to his room.

…..

"Lady Edelgard, are you paying attention to my words?"

"Forgive me Hubert, I´m just a bit exhausted, only that"

They were at the main hall of the monastery. Even though the main gates were completely opened the air inside was warmth enough thanks to the presence of torches and magical flames that gave more light to their surroundings.

"As I was saying I´ve found out that Monica has been frequenting an abandoned chapel in the surroundings of the monastery"

"A chapel? Is there something of interest to her in such a place?" Monica had been frequenting the students of the lower levels of the monastery, but she didn´t think that she was planning to attack them, at least for now.

"At a first glance I didn´t see anything of interest. The place appears to have been abandoned for years. It is highly unlikely that something of interest had remained there after all this time"

"Keep an eye on her, we must be cautious about her whereabouts" she said as she saw a familiar back walking besides them. "Isn´t that the Professor?"

"He is. And he appears to be prepared for battle. How interesting. I wonder where he is heading"

Her Professor appeared to be wearing a full combat armor and she could see the Sword of the Creator at one of his sides.

"If he is carrying the Sword of the Creator it is clear that he is up to something. I wonder where he is heading. Hubert, call the rest of the students. We will follow the Professor"

"Understood, Lady Edelgard. I will search for them"

"Is this a task from the archbishop?" she wondered as she followed him with her eyes.

…..

"We have finally arrived here" Sothis said as he walked through the ruins. Despite the snow falling at the monastery he could barely see traces of snow among the ruins as if the place was warmer than its surroundings. "This place is really strange, yet I can avoid feeling familiar with all of it. I wonder why"

"I feel like that too" he said as he walked through the ruins. Strange runes could be seen in some of the walls, their meaning lost long time ago. Walking next to them he recalled the vision he once had when he battled accompanied by his students when they had to get rid of that group of bandits.

"Have you found anything of interest?"

"No, only emotions from a time I don´t remember anymore. I´m feeling completely confuse. If I am supposed to be the Goddess how can I be so helpless, it doesn´t make any sense. Ah, my head hurts. We should return before the sun sets. We don´t want to…"

Her words were interrupted by the roar of a beast.

"What was that?"

"It sounded like a beast of a great size" he said as he unsheathed the Sword of the Creator, it´s light casting away the shadows of the ruins.

"We must return before the situation gets worse"

As he tried to approach the stoned bridge at the entrance of the valley, his path was blocked by a giant wolf, similar to the ones he had to fight in the Leicester Alliance. The moment their eyes met the giant beast howled approaching him.

"This one isn´t the one that roared a few moments ago" he thought as he prepared to fight against the beast.

Avoiding a giant rock that was thrown to him he approached the bell of the beast. Using his strength he cut through the skin and flesh of the beast. The beast tried to fight back, but he was too small and he was too close to be repelled effectively. With a swift hit he cut through the giant wolf´s throat silencing his dying howl, an ominous silence returning to the valley. However, this silence didn´t last for too long as two giant shadows appeared on the cliffs surrounding the valley to his right and two other shadows appeared to his left.

The pack of wolves quickly approached him, the first of them with its jaws wide open to devour him. Avoiding the upcoming attacks he climbed one of the wolves backs using one of the partially destroyed buildings. The beast entered a frenzy like state the moment he climbed on it trying to bite him, but its efforts were fruitless. Using the beast as a shield against the attack of the approaching wolves he used the Sword of the Creator to attack the other beasts before finishing off the beast he was mounting.

"Your control of the sword has really improved as time has passed, but we should leave before more beasts start to arrive"

"In that case we have to get rid of the source of those screams" he said as he tried to look for the origin of the roar of the beast. As the hidden beast roared again he could see a giant shadow close to the stone bridge of the entrance, but his path was blocked by a new horde of monsters.

"Not only giant wolves, but we also have to fight against giant chickens?!"

Hearing her words, he couldn´t avoid smiling

"I think that they are giant eagles, not chickens"

"It doesn´t matter, if we don´t get through them we will be in a hurry. I don´t want to be the dinner of those monsters"

"Don´t worry, this won´t be our end" he said as he prepared to resist the next assault of beasts.

…..

"It seems that a battle had already started" Hubert chuckled as they arrived to the entrance of the valley.

"Wow, the Professor is fighting against lots of monster!" Caspar shouted as he saw corpses of countless giant wolves and eagles spattered across the land. She could see her Professor standing a few meters apart from them. He appeared to be exhausted, but he was still holding his own against the multiple beasts. When he looked at them he smiled and pointed at something on their left. The moment she turned her head she saw a beast of a monstrous size completely different to the giant wolves and birds her Teacher was fighting. The beast had an ivory carapace and appeared to be silently witnessing Byleth´s fight against the beasts. The beast appeared to have something resembling a crest stone on its face.

"An interesting beast" Hubert chuckled to her side.

"We have to take down that beast" she said as she looked to the rest of the students. "Ferdinand, Caspar and Bernadetta assist the Professor! The rest come with me, we must make sure to defeat that beast!"

"Understood!"

Realizing their presence, the beast roared and jumped from the cliff where it was witnessing the battle. The beast tried to throw to them a poisonous fluid, but it failed. Using the power of her twin crests she pierced through the beast armor, biting the flesh beneath it.

With a piercing roar the monster tried to body slam her, but it was met by the combined spells of Hubert and Dorothea. As the beast was trying to avoid the spells that were hitting it all over the place she and Petra charged at it from opposite directions. With a war cry in her native language Petra released the full power of her sword against one of the beast´s hind legs as she did the same against the other one. Losing its balance the beast fell to a side, next to one of the precipices that surrounded the area.

"Now we have our opportunity! Release every possible spell to make it fall!"

"Said and done, Lady Edelgard" Hubert said with a sinister smile as he released all his magic power. Dorothea did the same with her electric spells. The combination of both sources of magic created a great explosion that weakened the ground around the beast and as it tried to stand once again its own weight made the ground under it crumble, sending it to the abyss with a final roar.

"Good job everyone. Now let´s reunite with the rest" she said as she rushed to Byleth´s position.

She found him accompanied by the remaining Black Eagle´s students, which were covered in sweat, but they didn´t appear to have any visible injuries. Byleth appeared to be ok as well, making her feel relieve.

"How did you know I was here?"

"Professor, it would have been more polite if you first thanked us for lending a hand" Linhardt complained as he caught his breath.

"I saw you at the main entrance of the monastery. You must admit that you weren´t strangely cautious about your leaving. I decided to summon all the Black Eagles to assist on this task and I guess it was a great decision after all" she said, proudly looking at all of them, although Flayn wasn´t among them.

"To avoid further questioning you should qualify this little adventure as an expedition. We don´t want to have to answer uncomfortable questions just for following you to this place" Hubert said standing next to her.

"You are right, thank you for helping me, but we must leave before it gets too dark. I wouldn´t like to be surrounded by beasts again"

"Don´t say that aloud! It was already scary when we had to fight all those monsters right now" Bernadetta cried, although during the battle she had proved to control her nerves.

"Sorry about that, let´s return already" her Professor said as he walked alongside all of the students. She was intrigued about the motives why he had gone to such a place, but she thought it would be wiser to ask about it when there weren´t any of the other students around.

As they weren´t a numerous group it didn´t take too much time to arrive to the surroundings of the monastery. The wind was chilly, but all of them had clothes that allowed them to resist the harsh conditions of the outside.

"Even if we had to lend you a hand you can´t skip our next rehearsal, Professor"

"Don´t worry Dorothea. I will be prepared. I´m not injured"

"Even if you were, you would be there. I´m sure about it" Linhardt said. "I´ve had enough for today. See you tomorrow"

As her classmates started to disband, she waited until there weren´t any of them to approach him.

"My Teacher, I must admit that I´m curious about the reasons that made you head to the Valley of Zanado. May I ask why did you go to such a place alone? Was it a task from the archbishop?"

"It wasn´t"

"Then why did you go there?"

Hearing her question he stood silent for a few moments.

"I wanted to explore the ruins, since I feel there is something strange related to it, but I didn´t find out anything relevant. Sorry for making you worry about me. I didn´t mean to drag all of you for this"

"Definitively those ruins are the living proof of a civilization that disappeared a long time ago, but I don´t think there is nothing relevant for us there. No matter what it was before, now it is place frequented by all kind of monsters. It wouldn´t be safe to go to such a place alone"

"You are right. I didn´t expect to face such amount of monsters there. The one that you and the rest of the students took down appeared to be their leader since the giant wolves and the giant eagles came after it roared" Byleth said with a pensive gaze.

"That monster appeared to have something resembling a crest on its face. It wasn´t surely an ordinary beast"

"Could it be someone like Miklan?"

"I can´t assure you that our assumptions are right, but I think that kind of beast shared some similarities with the monster that appeared in front of us when Miklan succumbed to the power of the Lance of Ruin. We should be careful from now on"

"Oh, Byleth, I was searching for you" Manuela said as she noticed the both of them talking. "I wanted to show you the results of my investigation regarding the events that had happened in Remire. Do you mind, Edelgard?" she said looking at her with a charming smile.

"I don´t mind, I will see you tomorrow Professor"

"See you Edelgard"

….

When he entered Manuela´s infirmary he was surprised to see Hanneman there too.

"He was interested to hear about my findings so I told him to come over here"

"What have you discovered?" he asked sitting next to Hanneman.

"The events that happened in Remire are darker than I expected. The frenzy state of the villagers wasn´t only related to the use of dark magic, but also a strange substance must have been inoculated in their bodies. I brought with me different samples and combined them with drops of my own blood and the result was always the same. The moment my blood entered in contact with the infected blood its color changed and turned into that strange black liquid"

"Even though time had already passed since this tragic event, it is interesting how this "substance" can be active. Do you know about any substance that modified with magic could do something like that?" asked Hanneman as he adjusted his monocle.

"I really wish I knew, but I didn´t have any access to any information related to this branch of magic. Even though the Church tolerates the use of black and white magic, the dark magic had always been a subject difficult to search for. Not even in the restricted sections I have found anything about it so I´m afraid I cannot with you more insight about it"

"Don´t worry Manuela. Thanks to you we know that things don´t appear to be as simple as they appeared to be at first glance. That means that we have a group that not only has in its power dangerous substances, but also has the knowledge of a branch of magic whose use could be related to what we consider in colloquial terms evil"

"Your analysis is correct, Hanneman. However, I must say that no matter the branch of magic, you could use them for evil purposes. Even what we call white magic can be used to harm or kill so the classification of the different branches of magic it's artificial at best"

"You are right Manuela. Magic is just a tool. If we consider it good or bad depends on the use we give it. What are you planning to do with your new findings?"

"I will inform Rhea and Seteth about it, although I wanted to tell both of you before I did" she then looked at him. "You were the one that was in combat with this mysterious group. You should be careful from now on. We don´t know when they will strike again"

"You too"

"Don´t worry, Byleth. Even if I had a little problem with that Death Knight when Flayn was kidnapped, that doesn´t mean that I will be unprepared the next time we have to face them" she said winking an eye.

He left the room accompanied by Hanneman. The day was already coming to an end and most of the aisles were deserted, the torches casting shadows against the walls of the monastery.

"From time to time Manuela really says interesting things. If she were like that most of the time she could even be a researcher. Talking about mysterious objects the weapon of choice of the Death Knight has really intrigued me for a long time. A giant scythe"

"I used it once against him back in Remire, but it was later destroyed when I tried to break the magic barrier that Solon casted between me and him"

"I´ve heard about it. When Rhea and your father went to village they picked some of the fragments of that weapon. It is under heavy surveillance, but I was able to catch a glimpse of it and I must admit that I´m still fascinated by what I saw"

"What do you mean?"

"Strange glyphs were written on it. It appeared to be an organized structure and not just a mere ornament so I suspect that it is possible a language or a method of communication we don´t know anything about. Besides, one particular element caught my attention. It appeared to be an eye surrounded by a group of geometrical motives. It reminded me of the symbols that the noble houses employ to differentiate themselves from the others"

Hearing his explanation he tried to recall the events that had happened the last month. When he wielded the giant scythe he didn´t feel anything strange about it, except for its lack of weight, making it a dangerous weapon in the wrong hands.

"Despite its size it was a light weighted weapon. It must have been built by materials different to the ones we use to forge our weapons"

"That sounds really interesting. I know that it isn´t my field of study, but I would do anything to have my hands on it. It is a pity that Rhea doesn´t allow a further research on it"

"Why wouldn´t she do something about it?" It was clear that Rhea was worried about the wellbeing of the villagers, yet he couldn´t understand why she wouldn´t allow an analysis of the fragments of the weapon they had obtained.

"I think that she isn´t just doing nothing about it, but we don´t know what kind of devices are hiding beneath the cold metal so I can´t really criticize her proceeding. However, whatever it may be I´m sure that we are facing a group with knowledge far superior to the one we have right now. Please, keep an eye on your students to avoid them getting into trouble" he said patting his shoulder as he prepared to leave.

"Could it be that the strange technology both Professors had been talking about is somehow related to that valley? You should ask before he goes away. I´m really curious to hear about it" Sothis said, looking at them.

"Hanneman"

"Yes, Byleth?"

"Do you know anything about Zanado? Could it be that there is some kind of relation between that place and the events that had happened the last months?"

"That is an interesting theory I´m eager to hear" Hanneman said as he adjusted his monocle. "As you know I´ve spent some time here in the monastery so it is only natural that I´m already acquainted with its surroundings. If we hold true the teachings of the Goddess that place is undoubtedly related to her, yet now only ruins are left of what appeared to be a great city. When I was young I had the opportunity to travel across all of Fódlan and apart from their customs and techniques I was able to notice the different architectonical styles of each country. However, that place is completely different to any other place I´ve ever been. The only thing that I can say for sure is the following: the civilization that settled in that place disappeared a long time ago. Why would you think it was related to the events of the last months? I´m genuinely curious"

"I thought that perhaps the advanced technology we had been talking about could it be related to that place since it is completely different to any other place I´ve ever been"

"Interesting idea. However, I think that they are unrelated. That place is completely isolated from other territories, but there aren´t any stories that talk about settlements in it since several hundreds of year. At least since the funding of this monastery that place hasn´t been populated. A pity that even the information of this monastery is incredibly scarce the more you dig into its history" he sighed. "I didn´t expect to have such a fruitful conversation with you, Byleth. It was certainly enlightening on certain aspects. If I ever get permission to analyze that mysterious weapon I will certainly tell you. Between your conversation and Manuela´s I have plenty of things to think when I´m not focused on my studies of Crest. By the way, if you see Linhardt, tell him I´m looking forward to hearing about his ideas about the book I had lent to him. Good night Byleth"

"See you later, Hanneman"

Leaving behind an unusually lively Hanneman behind he decided to return to his room. Placing the Sword of the Creator in its magic box he tried to think about everything that had happened that day.

"This was really an interesting day, but there is something I don´t really understand yet. Why would monsters gather in such a strange place? One of them appeared to be their leader too. Are they somehow attracted to that place? In that case why? My head hurts just by thinking about it" Sothis complained as he returned to his room.

**12/17**

The day was cloudy, but luckily enough, it wasn´t snowing for once in a while.

"In two months there won´t turning back, but even if I make the world my enemy I won´t back down" she thought as she cleaned her face with cold water. Kronya was definitively up to something, but she couldn´t simply kill her. There were too many vigilant eyes on her and pretend her death to be an accident would leave too much questions on the air. Thales and Solon had been completely silent for a while, but that wasn´t assuring. "They are definitively up to something"

As she opened the doors of her room there was no sight of Hubert. She knew that he was keeping an eye on Kronya, but she couldn´t avoid wondering if she was letting him assuming too much risks. Hubert was a capable mage, but with something as unstable as Kronya there was always the risk that she could react aggressively if she realized they were controlling her movements around the monastery.

"When I turn into the next Emperor I will be able to rely less on them, but I can´t openly oppose to them until the appropriate moment comes and when it came she would make sure that…"

"Edie, why are you standing in the middle of the aisle? What are you thinking about?"

"Oh, Dorothea. It´s nothing, I was just thinking about the events of this month, nothing more"

"This month has been really interesting, but the best part of it isn´t over yet" Dorothea said with a charming smile. "I can´t wait to see the reactions that our little play will make. I hope that everyone can enjoy it. Besides, the night of the ball is approaching and with it all kind of interesting events" she giggled. "I´ve already plenty of plans prepared for it"

"I´m happy to hear about it. I must admit that I´m impressed by the quality of your acting. It really reminds me of Manuela, even though I was only able to watch her performance once"

"Being compared with my mentor makes me really happy. I was planning to call everyone to make a final general practice, but everyone appears to be heading to watch a fight"

"A fight?"

"Yes, a fight between the Professor, Sylvain and Lorenz. Didn´t you hear about it? It was something really difficult to ignore since Lorenz has been talking about it with everyone that crossed his path"

"Now that you talk about it, I heard it from the Professor. Lorenz wants to defy the Professor and Sylvain to clean a stain on his honor as a noble"

"Don´t make me remember why I don´t like most nobles" Dorothea sighed. "When you have everything at the reach of your hand it is really easy to focus on unimportant things like your honor or complaining about imaginary threats, but most people can´t afford that luxury. Some people can´t only thing about the food that will keep them alive for another day" Dorothea said, the expression of her face hardened as she said so.

"Dorothea… I apologize for everything that has happened to you. I know that most nobles can be unbearable"

"I wasn´t criticizing you with that Edie. In fact I must admit that I´m quite fond of you" she said with another of her charming smiles. "It´s just that it is very ironic. When I was a little girl most nobles ignore me as if I were nothing but some mud on the streets of the city, yet when I was picked by Manuela and debuted in the opera the very same nobles started to appraise my qualities and looks. They are really a bunch of hypocrites, but you and the others are mostly fine, but I don´t like Lorenz a bit, mainly because of his attitude. Anyway, how about we go to see that fight? I´m sure that the Professor is going to win, but I would like to see Lorenz´s face"

"I will accompany you then"

The air outside the walls of the buildings of the monastery was chilly, but luckily the snow was giving them a break. As they headed to the place where tournaments where held she could hear an increasing number of voices. When they finally entered the place she realized that most of the students were already there.

"Hello Edelgard" greeted her Lysithea, who was holding what appeared to be a tome of magic.

"Hello Lysithea. What are you reading?"

"A tome about advanced magic. I´m really interested in improving my abilities even further" she said with a proud smile.

"I´m sure that you will master that tome in no time" she smiled as she took a seat next to her. They didn´t have to wait for much longer as Lorenz, the Professor and Sylvain appeared in the center of the arena. Her Professor was wearing his usual equipment and he had his usual neutral expression on his face, although he faintly smiled the moment he saw them. Sylvain was wearing black iron armor and a lance, but the worst offender was Lorenz. He was wearing purple armor with overcomplicated decoration based on roses. He even had a red rose on top of it. He bowed before of them before with a triumphant smile on his face.

"Hello everyone. I am pleased to see everyone here. I have defied both the Professor and Sylvain to proof to the entire monastery that my honor as a noble is intact and that the accusations made against me are nothing but a fraud made by jealously and unfounded hatred. With that said I hope that all of you can enjoy a battle that will surely be remembered for the coming years"

As he said that he returned to the center of the arena and bowed before both of them. Her Professor simply nodded his head and Sylvain was sighing as he prepared himself for the upcoming battle.

"Everyone ready? Fight!" Alois shouted, which appeared to be the judge of the battle.

Lorenz and Sylvain directly charged at the Professor. He stood still as they approach him and in a split of a second he jumped backwards, making Sylvain and Lorenz clash against each other. Taking advantage of the situation Byleth quickly knocked them down. Lorenz tried to resist the most, but before a minute had passed it was clear that the battle was already over.

"And the winner is Byleth! That was really fast!" Alois shouted.

"More than a battle that was a beating, although a beating that I don´t disagree with" Dorothea giggled as they saw her Professor trying to help Lorenz to stand up again. Lorenz´s face was completely red like the rose he was wearing on his armor. With a quick bow he quickly abandoned the place, avoiding everyone´s gazes.

"Professor I told you to be nicer with me. I wasn´t the one that started all of this" Sylvain was complaining to Byleth as they approached them.

"I told you that that wouldn´t be fair. Hello Edelgard, Dorothea"

"You really give your best no matter the situation, Professor"

"Since all of you are doing your best I need to reciprocate"

….

"With so much snow the world looks so innocent"

"I wonder how you can make such a statement when you lack those qualities, Kronya. Anyway, I hope that you have secured a group of beasts for our next experiment. Myson will be doing the same soon, but he has other objectives on top of it" Their surroundings were completely silent, but he wasn´t too comfortable talking so close to the watch of one of their sworn enemies.

"Don´t worry Thales. They believe that I´m just an innocent and fragile girl, they don´t know what it is going to happen to them. I´ve everything prepared for it. I´m just waiting a signal"

"You won´t have to wait for too long. Strike when the security of the monastery it at its lowest. I heard that they are focused with the celebrations of this month. Take advantage of that"

"I won´t fail you, I promise" Kronya said bowing before him in a mild manner.

"I hope so. Failure would be the least of your worries in case that you disappoint me. Now leave. I don´t have more business with you"

After she had left he watched the monastery from the distance. "The final watchtower of our real enemy. The last threat before the world returns to the true humanity"

"Those who are not divine tried to destroy us humans, but they failed. Ours will be the final victory and this world will finally meet peace" he thought as he prepared to teleport to the place where they had to exile. A place without light, where only those who longed for the ancient times remained.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To avoid any confusion I must explain the following concepts (although I suspect that I have mixed sometimes the terms Yami and black magic)
> 
> 闇魔法 (Yamimahou) Used by TWSITD and those with a connection with them (Jeritza, Hubert and Lysithea, Edelgard). Lysithea and Edelgard presumably because of the experimentation they suffered.
> 
> 黒魔法 (kuromahou). Black magic, but with nothing in particular to say about it.
> 
> 白魔法 (shiromahou). White magic.
> 
> I think that I will write Yami with the term dark exclusively. In case I mix the concepts please tell me.


	45. The day of the Play

**12/20 Ethereal Moon**

A small wall of ice had already formed outside of his room as Byleth opened the door. He was welcomed by a freezing breeze as he headed to the canteen.

"So tonight is going to be the day of the play uh? I hope that all that practice can come to a good end. It was surely interesting to watch, all of you"

"I hope that everyone likes it" It was the first time he was doing something like that, but he didn´t want them to be disappointed with the final result.

"I´m sure that all of you will do just fine" Sothis assured him as he opened the gates of the canteen.

The canteen was comfortably warm and there weren´t many students around since it was too early. He had plenty of time until the start of the play, although he wasn´t sure about what to do until then.

"Good morning Professor. Can I share breakfast with you?" greeted him Dimitri, his solemn aura partially casted away.

"I don´t have any problem. Happy birthday, Dimitri" he said as he handed him a pair of new riding boots.

"Thank you for remembering it Professor. I really appreciate it. You really know that I´m fond of riding" he said, seemingly pleased. "This weather reminds me of Faerghus. The change of seasons really make us realized how unimportant we are. We can do our best efforts to prepare a good harvest, but we are powerless against the will of nature"

"Living in Faerghus must be really hard when winter arrives". He had already experienced the cold of Sreng, he was sure that the weather conditions of the Holy Kingdom weren´t mild as well"

"You are right about it, Professor. Between the cold, the plagues and the poor harvests my country suffers every year. However, we have always proved that no matter the adversity we can get through it. The Holy Kingdom needs to change in some areas that my uncle is unwilling to tackle, but that doesn´t mean I will do nothing when the time comes"

"I´m sure that you will be a good king" Knowing the three of them, he was sure that if they get along the relations between the three country would significantly improve.

"I will do my best to achieve so. It is my duty for my citizens; to bring justice to this world. By the way Professor, could you accompany me to the training room? I know that you have a play tonight, but before that happens I wanted to ask you a favor"

"I don´t mind. What is it?"

"I´ve been training with some villagers from Remire, but I thought it was a good idea to have a person like you taking part in the practice. I couldn´t think of any person more suitable than you regarding that"

"I don´t have any problem with that. I will accompany you"

"I´m glad to hear that" Dimitri smiled.

"More training, seriously? So boring" Sothis complained as she extended her arms and yawned.

After they had finished eating they headed to the training room in the right wing of the monastery. Apart from them only patrols could be seen walking outside of the buildings of the monastery.

"I didn´t expect you to be training with children"

"I know, but I wasn´t the one to offer to help them. I was training with Dedue and they were watching it and when we were finished they came to ask if we could train them too. Most of them have nowhere to go. Some of them are even orphans so the moment I looked at them I remembered that I was once like them. After the tragedy of Duscur there was no one to support me, only Dedue. The relation with my uncle has always been complicate since the moment my father was chosen over him to rule the Holy Kingdom as he was born crestless" he said as his eyes grew sadder.

"I´m sorry for your loss Dimitri. I will gladly teach them how to fight"

"You don´t really have to comfort me, Professor. You are not the one responsible of those dire events." he said, although in his eyes still lingered a shadow.

The training room was warm and was filled with children. Some of them were already carrying training weapons, but they were using it to chase others and play. Looking at them he couldn´t avoid faintly smiling.

"Sorry for making all of you wait. The Professor had agreed to instruct all of you. I will be lending a hand too so I hope that this training session can be of any help for all of you"

"You are the one that fought against the evil people at the village!" said a young boy with his eyes wide open. "I want to fight like you to protect everyone"

"I will do my best to train all of you" he said nodding at them.

Teaching the basics of combat to all of them was difficult, since most of them had never used a weapon in all their lives and those who had used one where most used to fight with shoves or hoes, not swords. However, they were eager to learn and when they ended the train they still had plenty of energy to play with each other.

"It is really refreshing to see children enjoying their lives. Despite all that has happened they are still able to smile" Dimitri said with a nostalgic smile "What happened in Remire is unforgivable. I will avenge those who died that day; the Flame Emperor and Solon will pay for their crimes"

"We will protect all of them from now on. We won´t let something like Remire happen once again"

"I must thank you for your encouraging words" Dimitri said nodding at him. "By the way, I wanted to ask you something since the first time our paths met. When you fought for the first time, were you calm as you killed your enemies?"

His question surprised him, but he thought about it. "The first time I killed someone…"

"I didn´t really think about it. It was a life or death situation where any doubt can get yourself killed or worse you can get an ally killed because of your actions"

"I see"

"And in your case, Dimitri?"

"Of course I wasn´t calm my first time. No matter how much time passes the burdens of the people I´ve killed will stay with me. The first time I fought in a real combat was to suffocate a rebellion that arose in the west part of the Holy Kingdom. It wasn´t a difficult fight and the enemy forces lacked preparation so the risks were low. However, no matter the reasons they had to take part into the fight they were all killed. One of the fallen soldiers had a lock of a woman´s hair as a pendant on his neck. I will never know if it was the hair of his daughter, his wife, his lover or even his mother…But the moment I saw it I knew that until his last moments of life he was just another person like us with people that were worried about his wellbeing and a family that cared for him"

"Hesitation is only human, Dimitri, but hesitation can lead to unnecessary deaths. A young boy of our company was able to defeat one of the enemy soldiers, but he hesitated to give the killing blow and that hesitation was the cause of his death as he was stabbed in the stomach by the same person he had hesitated to kill. Killing for the pleasure of killing is wrong, but when you are in a fight showing doubts can lead to unnecessary deaths"

"The reality of our world is really harsh. You are right about it, Professor. I wasn´t saying that the actions of those who rebelled were forgivable, but when the fight is already over I can´t avoid thinking about things like that. The fact that we use our ideals to rob the lives of others really makes me wonder about what is right and what is not. You might think that I´m a weak being after hearing my explanation…"

"You aren´t weak at all, Dimitri" he said patting his shoulder. "Every person has moments when they have doubts about what is the best thing to do. Battlefield or everyday life there is always a problem or situation that can make us wonder if what we are doing can be considered right or not. If we weren´t able to feel like that we wouldn´t be any different to some of the beasts that dwell this land"

"Have you ever wondered about the things you have done?"

"As a former mercenary we have done plenty of things that could be considered contrary to our own beliefs. However, that doesn´t mean that we have accepted every deal that has been offered to us. My father has refused plenty of deals that considered outright wrong. "We are soldiers, not murderers" is what he used to say back in our mercenary days"

"The life of a mercenary is really a completely different life to that of a knight. I´ve always thought that mercenaries always fought for gold, but after hearing your words I must change my opinion. Mercenaries aren´t that different to normal soldiers. They obey orders, but that doesn´t mean that they will do whatever you order them" he then looked at him. "The first time we met I saw how you kill those bandits without changing your expression at all. I thought I would never trust someone like you, a person that can kill without blinking an eye, but after spending time with you I´ve realized that my first impression was wrong. You aren´t a merciless killer, only a warrior that is used to fight, but that he is able to risk his own life to save the life of others. I must admit that I trust and admire you now, Professor"

"I´m happy to hear that" He knew that his expressions were lacking, even though that had started to change as time passed, but that didn´t mean that he didn´t worry about the wellbeing of all of his students. "If you ever need my help, I will be there for you"

"I will remember your words, Professor" Dimitri said nodding at him. "For today I think we´ve had enough training, but I´m looking forward to our next training session. And thank you for helping the children. Even if we weren´t able to save all the inhabitants of the village I´m happy that we can at least help them with something. I will be taking my leave, Professor. I´m looking forward to watching tonight´s play" Dimitri said as he opened the door of the training room, leaving him alone.

"That little boy has finally opened to you. He always appears to be extremely professional, but he is an innocent child, after all"

"All of them have their own dreams and traumas, but I can´t really blame Dimitri. Faerghus is a harsh place and only those who are able to kill others can really survive, but that doesn´t mean that it is an enjoyable experience"

"Kill or be killed. A question that is more difficult to answer when you take a deep look at it. Most people would say that is preferable to kill, but every action has its own consequences. The only thing I can say is that sometimes you have to do things that you don´t necessarily have to agree with. What are you going to do now? There is still plenty of time until you have to reunite with the rest"

He was about to answer, but he was interrupted as the doors of the training room opened once again.

"So you were there son. I´ve heard from one of the students that you were training with a bunch of kids. Did you find anyone that could be a suitable mercenary?"

"Hello father, most of them are quite inexperienced with fighting, but they really did their best. Did you have any problems out there?"

"If snow can be considered a problem then I had plenty of it, but apart from that nothing too troublesome. There are almost no travelers now so we have spent most of the time just patrolling the territories of the monastery. You are quite busy though. Being trapped with all this kind of celebrations must be quite strange for someone like you"

"Since my students are giving their best I have to give my best too"

"You are really fond of your dear students" Jeralt laughed as he rubbed his hair. "Seteth was searching for me. You are free to accompany me if you want to"

"It will be a pleasure"

Seteth and Rhea were already waiting at the audience room. Magic fires were casting the shadows away and gave the impression that they still were in the middle of the summer.

"Hello Jeralt, Professor" Seteth said with his usual expression. "We have summoned you to discuss something that had recently happen within the boundaries of this monastery. There are signs that people have entered the abandoned chapel close to this building"

"The old chapel?"

"It was one of the first buildings of the Church. According to the history books, it was used when the teachings of the Holy Church started to spread across Fódlan. When the cathedral was built its use started to decline, but it has been used from time to time to hold celebrations, although the last one happened at least fifty years ago" Rhea said looking at him.

"I remember that place. It has a tower and it is surrounded by a small forest. Is there something of value there?"

"Exactly. As Rhea had said that place has been abandoned for at least 50 years and there is nothing of value remaining at that place. However, even in the case that there are no objects of interest, the Church cannot allow intrusions in its properties. It is a place of low priority, but it would be wise to send some patrols to the place to make sure that there are not thieves lurking around. In this period of the year food runs scarce and some thieves might be desperate enough to enter the grounds of the monastery in search for objects of value"

"I will keep an eye on it then, but I don't think that a bunch of thieves will pose us any problems"

"I am confident that there is nothing to worry about it, but I will pray for the wellbeing of both of you" Rhea said adopting a praying gesture. "I will not disturb you any longer. I am sure that you want to have some time to give a final practice before the play begins" she said smiling to him.

"Since my son is busy will all kind of stuff you could give him a better wage, don´t you think Seteth?"

"I will consider it after I witness Flayn´s performance"

"I was half joking, but I will remember your word then" Jeralt laughed. "Now with your permission"

He left the audience room with his father, thinking about the information he had just heard.

"The monastery is even bigger than I expected"

"It really is son. What we call the monastery are just the main buildings of it, but there are other areas around it that are included within it. That chapel is located to the north of the monastery and there is nothing relevant about it, but I guess that since it is often left unchecked some thieves might be wandering there"

"Are there any more places like that?"

"The other place I can think of is the Sealed Forest"

"The Sealed Forest? Why is it called like that?"

"Even though I´ve been working here for years I don´t know why it is called like that. There is nothing strange about that place. I think it was once used by the Church at its beginning but that´s the most I can say about it" he said as they arrived before his room. "I will be preparing to leave again to make sure that those thieves don´t ruin the day, but don´t worry I will be here to see what little surprise you have prepared with your students"

"I hope that you enjoy it" he said with a faint smile.

"Looking at you, I´m sure I will"

"The Sealed Forest….An abandoned Chapel. The Church is really huge if it has so many properties. Not only that, but the main building itself has a lot of hidden passages and tunnels. I wonder how deep the monastery really is" Sothis said inside his head.

"We have to be especially careful with the tunnels. We barely know about them and the likes of Solon could be lurking beneath the surface" The monastery was filled with unknown access and that made him wonder the purpose of such devices. "The monastery has a history of at least one thousand years. It wouldn´t be strange if those tunnels were used to communicate facilities that aren´t used anymore"

"We will have to return to the detective work later, I guess, but for the time being you should return to your room and practice your dialogues. We don´t want to disappoint your dear students, right?"

"Don´t worry, I will give my best"

"That´s what I wanted to hear" Sothis smiled as he headed to his room.

….

"You look fearsome with that appearance, Edie." Dorothea said as she applied on her face the makeup she had prepared for her.

"How about me, Dorothea? Do I look like the fearsome Count of the tale?" Ferdinand said as he approached them wearing an armor and black clothes that contrasted with the color of his eyes and hair.

"If you just use the tone that we have been using during the rehearsals you will captivate everyone" Dorothea said with a charming smile. "I will have to thank Mercedes and Annette later for their help with the sewing"

"I lent a hand too!"

"I know Bernie and I´m really proud of the designs that you have made"

Everyone was already wearing its costumes or searching for them.

"In five minutes we have to start. Hurry up" her Professor said, already wearing his costume, dark clothes on top of a dark armor and a cloak that partially hided his face.

"Don´t worry Professor. Everything is prepared for this great day" Dorothea said with her best smile.

"I must agree with Dorothea. After all the practice we had I´m confident that we won´t have any problems" Edelgard said looking at all of them. All her classmates, even Linhardt, had been preparing for this with all they had. The last time she had seen them with such high spirits was before the mock battle at Gronder Field.

"After all the practice we had to endure I would say" complained Linhardt.

….

"This is the story from a long time ago. Back at a time when the blessing of the Goddess was still strong in the lands of Fódlan. Those who received her blessing ruled wisely over the common folk, but there was one Lord whose ambitions were endless" Linhardt said, marking the beginning of the play.

"I am the proud owner of this land. Everything that my sight reaches is mine by right" Ferdinand said entering the illuminated area of the stage. "The blessing of the Goddess is strong in me, but that is not enough"

"What else do you want, my Lord?" Byleth asked as a shadow behind him.

"The secret of immortality. What is the purpose of endless wealth if I cannot enjoy it after my life ends? The fact that such thing could happen to me is infuriating!"

"I can kill your enemies, but defeating death is a different matter, my Lord"

"A peasant like you would never understand something like that, but I will explain it to you. Ancient books talk about a chalice that is capable of granting an eternal life to those who drink from it. For years I dismissed those tales of the common folk as the nonsense they were, but a fortnight ago I came across with this beautiful thing" Ferdinand said as he showed to everyone a golden chalice. "My court of mages had assured me that it will grant me an endless life, enough time to turn this world into my liking"

"In that case why don´t you just use it, my Lord?"

"If things were that simple… A pact of blood must be done. A life for a longer time on this earth and that is the part where you will assist me. You have been by my side since that time I found you half dead next to a stream in my lands. I thought about getting rid of you, but you have proofed to be an extremely useful tool"

"I owe you my life; I will do as you wish" Byleth said bowing before him.

"Those are the words I wanted to hear the most. Rise again executioner and bring me what my heart desires"

"True to his word the executioner travelled across Fódlan catching those who were suitable for such a terrible crime. Some of them resisted and some of them begged for mercy, but those words had not content in his ears. Unknowing to him, his heart had been turned into stone by the very same mages that formed the court of the Count"

…..

She could feel her heartbeats as she entered the stage accompanied by her students.

"This beautiful land had unjustly suffered under the rule of the wicked Count. Countless lives had been taken away by him and the mages of the court, but this situation must come to an end" she said looking to the crowd in front of her.

"But how would we do something like that? We are just peasants with rusted weapons against the power of the Count" Caspar said moving his axe.

"I don´t want to face the Executioner!" Bernadetta cried in a convincing tone.

"Comrades, don´t hesitate because justice is on our side. The Count might consider himself a deity, but he is a mere mortal like us. If we do nothing the people will continue to suffer and we can´t allow something like this to happen"

"The Count must be taken down. I will follow you" Petra said, unsheathing her sword. "Even if we are few giving up is not an option. With so many lives at risk we have to fight"

"The Goddess is surely saddened by the evil deeds of that man. I am a mere nun, but I will do everything I can to help your just cause" Flayn said praying. "Those who are stained by the dark cannot be allowed to rule the world of men. The Goddess is saddened by all the unnecessary suffering that has been committed to this land"

…..

"The small company continued its way across the lands of the Count. They protected the weak from the troops of the Count and robbed them of all the goods they had, but that came with a price since the attacks came to the ears of the Count"

"Infuriating, how such a thing could possibly happen. This is outrageous. How can they raise their weapons against their rightful ruler! Filthy beasts"

"My Lord, the source of the information is trustworthy. I am afraid that some peasants are opposed to your just rule. They have the support of the common folk" Hubert said bowing before Ferdinand.

"You have always served me loyally and you are the one that has granted me a longer longevity, but those attacks must meet an end. I will not tolerate any defiance to my rule. They must know their place unless they want to be crushed by all my might. Executioner, lead my troops to the battlefield and catch the leader of the bandits. You can kill the rest of their followers if they resist"

"It will be done, my Lord"

….

"Leading the troops of the Count, the Executioner head to the villages where the bandits had been seen, but his search was fruitless"

"Why do you refuse to tell us the truth, filthy peasant?" Hubert said looking at Dorothea.

"I don´t know where they are milord, this village had no contact with those you seek"

"You are evidently lying. There is no other possibility. You must be hiding them, but you will soon realize that it is wiser to tell us the truth" he then looked at Monica. "Set the city on fire. This place will turn into the living proof of what happens to those stupid enough to defy the authority of their rightful rulers"

"Please mercy! This place is unrelated to the persons you seek!" implored Dorothea as she looked to the auditorium. "Merciful Goddess, please aid those who need you the most!"

"Stop this madness, the one the Count desires is me" she said as she advanced to the center of the stage. "I am the one that seeks to end his tyranny" she then looked to the rest of her warriors. "Evacuate everyone. We can´t allow them to start a new bloodshed"

"So you have finally showed your true face. How ridiculous that a thief like you aims to destroy the rule of our rightful Lord. You will end up begging for your life when you end in my hands. Surrender"

"I´m not the one that will be defeated this day. If you want to kill me, you will have to take this sword from my hand" she said, unsheathing her weapon.

"I am fed up with this chattering. Executioner, obey the Count´s command and bring her to us"

"It will be done"

He approached her with his sword aiming at her. As their swords met the sound of the clash could be heard across the entire room, the auditorium completely silent.

"This way of fighting…I have a faint memory of it" he said as he parried one of her attacks and counterattack.

"Highly doubtful. I have nothing to do with the lapdog of the Count. You are a formidable fighter, but I won´t be the one to die here"

With a potent attack she was able to disarm the executioner, the impact revealing what hid behind the shadows.

"It cannot be…you died a lifetime ago"

Taking advantage of that moment of doubt he used the strength of his arms to trap her.

"All of you, run away before it is too late! We can´t allow them to defeat us so easily"

"We won´t back down, I promise!" Caspar shouted as he helped Dorothea to leave the stage, accompanied by the rest of them.

"You fought well, but your luck has finally come to an end. You will come with us to the castle of the Count, where you will be judged accordingly to your wrongdoings" Hubert said, but she wasn´t paying attention to him.

"Why have you turned into the sword of the Count? You, who were once my closest friend,. You, who were the protector of those who had always suffered under the powerful. You were always a good person, yet the waters of the river shallowed you during the last fight we had together. What happened to you to turn into something like this" she asked looking directly at him into the eye.

"I don´t have any memories of the things you say. I´ve been serving him since I have memory" he said as he avoided his gaze and looked into the horizon. "I have no name. I´m the sword of the Count and all refer to me as the Executioner. So be it"

"Those were the words he said, but as he repeated the words that had been put into his mind a long time ago, the first cracks started to appear in his heart made of stone. The leader of the thieves was sent to the castle of the Count, a horrid place that could only inspire fear in the heart of those unlucky enough to enter it" Linhardt said. As he said it magic fires were casted, making the decoration behind them have a sinister look.

"So you were the one attacking my properties. How infuriating and disrespectful to think that a pitiful peasant like you could do something like that"

"A peasant is not a thing you can simply control to fulfil your own ambitions"

"The arrogance of your tone denotes how blind you are. The Goddess has bestowed upon my family her blessing. My divine rule is uncontested. Only a fool would dare to defy it!"

"You don´t stop talking about your divine rule, but the truth is that it is based on the unnecessary suffering of others and with your death everything you have built will turn into ashes until no one will ever remember what happened during your tyranny"

"Interesting words coming from someone that will promptly be sacrificed. Your endless babbling exhausts me, but your life will be worth taking for my own sake" he said looking at the public. "My rule will never end and those who defy me will be promptly executed as this fool. Send her to darkest cell and prepare everything for the ritual. Executioner bring her down to the dungeons"

"As you wish"

"The dungeons of the castle of the Count harbored all kind of unimaginable nightmares. It was a place built out of desperation and hatred. A place where light and innocence were a long time ago forgotten"

The place was completely dark and only a frail light was the only sources of illumination in all the stage, making Byleth appear like a giant shadow besides her.

"You weren´t always like this. You were once the person that everyone grew to love. What had happened to you?"

"I don´t know what you are talking about. Even if something like that happened in the past it has no meaning anymore"

"You are wrong; it has everything to do with what is happening right now. The evil deeds of the Count must be stopped for the sake of those who had to endure unnecessary suffering. Look at me and tell if everything I´ve said is wrong or not"

He looked at her, but with the world surrounded in shadows she couldn´t clearly see what was his real reaction.

"Stop talking, I´m beyond redemption now"

"If you can feel regret then it means that there is still hope for you. You only have to fight for it"

"Enough of this fruitless chattering. No matter what you do, you won´t persuade him to back down. He is my greatest creation; a weapon without a will of its own"

"You are one of the mages of the court. So it is true that all of you have committed unforgivable crimes. All of you will pay for their crimes"

"The Goddess has no power here. With my knowledge the rule of the Count will be endless and endless will be our power over humankind. You cannot stop the inevitable" he chuckled as he looked at Byleth. "The time has come. Bring her to the audience room"

…..

"Your pitiful life will end here. Those who question my authority don´t deserve a second opportunity to correct their wrongdoings. However, I will let you have your last words before us" Ferdinand said standing beside him. The fury that he could feel in his tone was impressive. He had really done his best to fulfil his role.

"I don´t take orders from you. Your rule is based on the suffering of those who don´t deserve it and every word that leaves your mouth is a sin against the Goddess" she said as he looked at him. "Was it all a lie? You weren´t like this. Fight against what controls you" she said, the look of her eyes piercing his.

"Your words are empty threads. Those who are not prepared to rule shall not speak against the will of their rightful rulers. Executioner, open her chest and end her life once and for all"

He slowly approached her in silent as the public was expecting how it will end. Looking at her chained he couldn´t avoid recalling the suffering she had to endure when she was still too young. He then raised his sword.

"Enough of this madness! Your rule of tyranny ends here and now, Count" Caspar shouted as he suddenly appeared in the stage accompanied by the rest of the Black Eagle students.

"Intruders! How can something like this happen?!"

"The crimes that you have committed against the common folk have granted you their hatred" Petra said as she prepared to fight.

"The suffering of the people won´t be in vain if we take you down" Dorothea said preparing her own magic.

"Not only that, but the Goddess is also on our side. The crimes you have committed will not be forgiven until your life comes to an end" Flayn said, surrounding herself in a cloud of magic.

"Unforgivable. All you are fools if you think that you will defeat me. Executioner, kill her! Now!"

Hearing his words he raised his sword…

And cut the chains that were surrounding her arms.

"Traitor! How dare to turn against your rightful lord!"

"It is up to me to decide the path I seek, even if I´m not the one I used to be" he said as he threw at her one of his swords.

"Your treason won´t be forgiven. Soldiers, mages kill the usurpers!"

….

With her sword she stopped the Count attack aiming at her heart.

"You reign of tyranny has come to an end"

"Only a fool would take things for granted before they can fulfil their objectives. I will not be the one to die here"

Surrounded by the strange atmosphere created by the spells of her classmates she felt like she was in a real battlefield and not in a stage.

Next to her, Byleth was fighting against Monica as if they were fighting in a real fight, although by the look of Monica´s eyes it appeared to be so.

"Defying my rule is a sin that won´t be easily forgiven!"

"I´m not here to beg for your mercy. I´m here to end your crimes once and for all"

…

"The fight continued until the troops of the Count were no more. Sacrifices were made, but in the end only the Count and his most faithful servant remained"

"You have fought well, but your life ends here" she said approaching the injured Count.

"Nonsense. My life cannot end like this. My ambitions will be shattered if something like that could happen"

"Even at a time like this you fail to realize your wrongdoings. You are beyond redemption"

She approached him, but in a sudden the leader of the mages of the court rushed to her position with a knife of an ominous look in his hand.

"Your life will end here and now" he cried, but he was stopped by a familiar back.

"How you dare to defy your own creator!"

"I don't know what you did to me, but I´m not your creature anymore" he said as he used his sword to end his life.

With only the Count left he tried to run away, but he was completely surrendered.

"Please, mercy! Don´t kill me!"

"Despite all the suffering that you have caused, you are the one begging for forgiveness now. How ironic"

"When the common folk dropped tears of blood you did nothing for them" Dorothea accused him.

"The Goddess is merciful, but even her has limits. You will not find mercy in between the people that you have tried to destroy. The only thing that remains is to pray in the hope that one day your soul will realize all the crimes he had committed. The only remaining hope for you is that you will regret everything you had committed until now" Flayn said, looking at the Count.

"All my dreams had been shattered. All my works will turn into dust and all of it because of my lack of sight. If you want to kill me, do it now. At least I will leave this world with some honor behind me"

"With a swift movement of her sword the Count finally met his demise. The news of the fall of the Count quickly spread around all the regions under his control and rebellions started to appear in each territory, ending everything that the Count had aimed to build and control"

…..

"It finally has ended" she said looking at the horizon. "The Count had paid for his crimes with his life and now peace can finally take place in this land"

"It won´t be enough"

"Why, dear friend?"

"I was behind many of the massacres in the name of the Count. As long as I live the legacy of the Count won´t be completely erased. I have to die for the crimes I have committed."

"Even if you committed numerous crimes I can´t really blame you for all of them. They did something to you. You didn´t act on your own will, but in case that you want to pay for your crimes I have a solution for it"

"What kind of solution?"

"Fight alongside me. Even now innocent people suffer under cruel rulers or bandits. If you want to repay your blood debt with them you can help me to avoid further sacrifices. What do you think?" she asked, extending her hand as she did so.

He looked at him in complete silence, but the moment he took her hand he faintly smiled.

"If with my death I won´t resolve the suffering I´ve caused I will spend the rest of my life trying to fix everything I´ve destroyed"

"And like that they travelled across the land of Fódlan and they turned into the bane of those who abused their power against the weak and even now when oppression happens it is said that they will come to the aid of those who need their help"

When Linhardt´s stopped talking a roar came from the public and in a short while they were surrounded by the cheers of students, villagers and members of the Church alike. Looking at the public, Byleth took her hand and raised it in front of everyone as the rest of the students approached them to receive the ovations. When Ferdinand appeared the ovations were even stronger, making him finally smile. Looking at the smiles of all of them she couldn´t avoid indulging herself into that happiness too.

"This will be surely a day to remember" Byleth whispered to her ear, smiling to her.

"You are right" she smiled back and for a while all her worries were casted away.

…

"That was amazing. I´ve never seen so much people cheering me up!"

"That´s only normal Caspar since we had the guiding of Dorothea"

"Your words are very nice Linhardt. Everyone did an incredible job, but you Ferdinand…you were amazing! The conviction of your lines made me think for a while that you were the real Count"

"It wasn´t a role of my liking, but I´m pleased to hear that coming from you, Dorothea. I must admit that I´m quite fond of Opera and Theatre"

"I´m glad to hear that coming from you. Now the only thing before the end of the month is the night of the Ball. If all months were like this I wouldn´t mind battling from time to time. Thank you Professor for not heading to another expedition of yours for the time being"

"No problem, but from next month we will continue training and battling as usual"

"I will make sure to enjoy the remaining days of freedom then" Linhardt sighed. "If you don´t have enough rest you are going to fall ill Professor. I´m not trying to skip your classes, I´m only worried about your wellbeing"

"I´m really proud of all of you" Edelgard said looking at her classmates. "We have shown the entire monastery what we are capable of doing when we are working together. The success of this night is all yours"

"Receiving a compliment like that from you makes my heart jump, Edie"

"It was only natural that it was going to be a success since we had the presence of Lady Edelgard, but I must admit that you did a good job too, Ferdinand"

"What?!... I´m left speechless by your words, Hubert, but for once I thank you sincerely"

"If Ferdie and Hubie can get along for a while thanks to something like this I´m sure it was a complete success" Dorothea said with her most charming smile.

"Now it is time for all of you to rest. Good job everyone. You deserve to get a good rest"

As everyone started to leave he took some time to recall the events that had just taken place. Seeing the smiles of all of them was something that made him feel extremely happy.

"Your dear students really did their best today. You must be really proud of them"

"I am. They have really improved their teamwork as time has passed" When he trained them for the first time he thought that they would never cooperate, but as time passed he had realized that even though some of them had completely different personalities or objectives, all of them had learnt to help each other to achieve their objectives and he was sure that they would remember that for the rest of their lives.

"I have the same opinion that you. Hopefully they will remember everything they had learnt until now. You should take a rest too. In no time that Ball will take place and we don´t want to disappoint your dear students, especially the little Princess"

"You are right about that. You can go to sleep before me"

"There is no need to say something like that since I planned to do it anyway. Good night Byleth… and good job"

"Good night Sothis"

As Sothis went to sleep he left the classroom where all his students had held a small celebration after the end of the play. Closing the door behind him he started to head towards his room when he saw a familiar student.

"Dedue, what are you going there?"

"Good evening Professor. Have you seen his Highness?" Dedue asked him in his usual taciturn tone, but he appeared to be worried.

"Dimitri? I haven´t seen him now. Has something happened? I can help you if you want some help"

Dedue looked at him with a serious gaze before he finally nodded.

"His Highness had been recently waking up in the middle of the night. I´ve only noticed as he appears to be tired. Because of it I´m worried about his wellbeing. He is also complaining about recent headaches"

"Headaches? Is he sick?"

"His Highness had been suffering those headaches as long as I remember, but they are more frequent when he doesn´t get enough rest. That´s why I´m worried about his wellbeing"

"I see. Let´s find him them. I will help you in your search"

"Thank you Professor"

He walked accompanied by Dedue through the grounds of the monastery as snow fell. The world surrounding them was completely silent, but he wasn´t uncomfortable about it. They spent an hour searching for him, but he didn´t find him.

"There is only a place left to check, the library" The first days after Tomas revelation of his true identity the library had been extremely controlled, but as weeks passed the security measures on that place had been lifted. Without a librarian to take care of the place of the timings to close the library he knew that some of the students like Lysithea and Annette entered the library at night to continue their studies.

"You are right, Professor. It is the only place we haven´t checked yet. He must be there. Let´s go"

As they entered the library the place was completely dark, but he could see a faint light coming from one of the corners of the main room. As they approached the source of light they found him, before he hurriedly put a book back at its place.

"Dedue, Professor, what are you doing here? I didn´t expect to see anyone here"

"We were searching for you, your Highness. You aren´t getting enough rest. I´m worried about your wellbeing"

"Dedue, I´m fine. You don´t have to worry about me like that. I was just searching for new techniques to learn to improve my training"

"Even in that case you should get some rest, Dimitri. You had been training with me early in the morning and you aren´t in bed yet it means that you aren´t getting enough rest. If you are tired you won´t be able to fight properly. Besides, I already know that you are doing your best so there is no need to exhaust yourself in the process" he said patting his shoulder.

"You are right, Professor" he sighed. "I promise I will take more care of my own wellbeing from now on. Since I was young I´ve always had a quite resilient body, but I must admit that some rest won´t cause me any harm. I will leave then. Thank you for worrying about me Professor, Dedue. Good night, Professor"

"Thank you for helping me, Professor. I will be leaving with him then, see you tomorrow. Good night"

"Good night to both of you"

"The attitude of the young Prince is a bit suspicious. I have the feeling that he hasn´t been completely honest about the reasons that dragged him to this library. How about we take a look to the book he had been reading?"

It wasn´t difficult to find that book since it wasn´t properly placed on the bookshelf. As he opened it he realized that it was a book the Church that consisted in a compilation of donations to the Church of Seiros.

"A book about donations to the Church? How boring, but there must be something important there if he was searching about it in the middle of the night"

As he passed the pages of the book a particular name caught his attention. "Volkhard von Arundel. It says that he suddenly stopped sending donations to the Church a few years ago, even though he was one of the main donators of the Church until that moment"

"That sounds quite fishy to me. Not only that, but also that name is quite familiar"

"He is the uncle of Edelgard and political uncle of Dimitri" he said, recalling the man that was talking with Dimitri last month.

"Exactly, you have a good memory. A pious man that suddenly stopped sending donations to the Church. He said that he had a difficult economic situation, but that doesn´t explain why he hasn´t reassumed them since I didn´t see him having any economic difficulties now"

"According to Hubert he has now an important political position within the Empire. I doubt he is short of money right now"

"In that case something has happened to him if he had such a radical change of opinion about the Church. I wonder why. Since we are already here how about we do some research about him? Curiosity has spoiled my need of sleeping"

Like that he started his search about House Arundel. It took him some time to have clear references of that House, but his efforts were worth it.

"House Arundel is a minor noble House of the Empire. Its lands are located to the north of the Adrestian Empire, along the border with the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus. This minor noble family had been recently elevated of status thanks to the marital union of one of its members to the current Emperor Ionius IX, granting the head of this family the tittle of Lord. During the upheaval of the Insurrection of the Seven Lord Arundel fled to the Holy Kingdom, but he eventually returned to the Empire. Lord Arundel is the current regent of the Empire."

"This Lord Arundel is a quite powerful man within the Empire. If he is the current regent of the Empire it means that he is the one to rule over everyone, at least until the little Princess claims the throne. How interesting. That noble is more than he appears to be. However, I still have doubts. Why is the young Prince so eager to know about his political uncle? Has something happened between them? In that case what?"

"One of the members of that house was married to the Emperor. That person must be Edelgard´s mother, but the Emperor is still alive. How was she able to marry twice? The Church doesn´t allow it since bigamy is considered a sin, although it doesn´t matter anymore since the ones involved in this story died during the Tragedy of Duscur"

"This story gets more difficult to understand the more we dig into it, but I´m sure about one thing; that Lord Arundel is not the man who pretends to be. It is obvious that he isn´t on good terms with the Church anymore. I wonder what he is doing with all the power and influence he had acquired as the regent of the Empire. The relationships between nobles are extremely strange. I would like to know more about what is going on, but I think we have acquired all the information we could gather from this place. What is left we will have to find it by our own. If the young Prince was so eager to investigate about his uncle it means that he suspects that there is something odd with him. I wonder how much he knows about the events surrounding this entire strange story"

"You are right" he said closing the book and putting it back into the bookshelf. There was something irking him about all the information he had just read. "If he was one of the instigators of the Insurrection of the Seven why did he run away from the Empire? Edelgard was once at the Holy Kingdom where she first met Dimitri, but if the nobles wanted to experiment on Edelgard to create the perfect Emperor it doesn´t make sense that Arundel, one of the leaders of the insurrection fled to the Holy Kingdom. Was he trying to protect her? In that case, why he changed all of a sudden his attitude? It almost feels like Lord Arundel is two persons at the same time or he was just pretending to care about the wellbeing of Edelgard? Why he appears to be on bad terms with the Church now despite all the donations he had made for it during most of his life?" he thought as he walked through the deserted aisles of the monastery. "Lord Arundel, Edelgard, Dimitri… What is lurking beneath the surface?" He had many questions he couldn't answer. "I will need to keep a watchful eye on all of this. I don´t have a good feeling about it" he thought as he headed to his room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The tale I created is an extremely distorted version of the Chalice from the DLC. You could consider it as something that filtered from the Church in some form but it has changed so much that only some elements (like the Chalice) are the only things that are left of the original version (the one that only High officials or Rhea know). By the way, the DLC part is approaching so keep an eye on that.


	46. The night of the Ball

**12/24 Ethereal Moon**

"Tomorrow is going to be the night of the Ball. Even though I don´t have fond memories of such events I´m looking forward to this one"

"A day where I have to take care of those stupid enough to dare to dance with Lady Edelgard. I´m looking forward to this time of the year too" Hubert chuckled

"Hubie, I don´t think that Edie was referring to it in that sense" Dorothea sighed. "After all the fights we had to endure I´m relieved to have days like this. If only things could be like this more often"

"I must admit that Edelgard´s skill is something to recall, but that can´t be compared with my own technique" Ferdinand said with a prideful smile.

"Ferdie, even if your technique isn´t bad that doesn´t mean that sometimes isn´t difficult to watch"

"I will show you tomorrow if I have the honor to have a dance with you"

"Oh, that was unexpected, but I don´t really mind" Dorothea said with a charming smile.

"The confidence in your tone is something I can admire. Apart from that I don´t feel like going to dance. It is so annoying. It will spoil my focus on my study of Crests"

"You can continue your investigation about Crests another day, Linhardt. Apart from the Ball I can´t wait to taste some of the dishes that are going to be served, although I would have to pick a fight or two like usual after that"

"You haven´t changed at all, Caspar, but I guess that I´m already used to it"

"I love you too, Linhardt" Caspar laughed.

"Professor, I beg you to let me skip tomorrow´s night! I would be like a fish trying to swim in the middle of a forest"

"Haha, you sometimes really look like a fish out of the water at class"

"Why do you say something like that?! It´s not like I´m a grilled fish!"

"Now that I think about it, to dance I will need a partner or something. Bernadetta, do you want to dance with me?" Caspar said scratching his head.

"After telling me that I look like a fish out of the water now you are asking me to dance with you?"

"Well, to be fair, you were the one talking about fishes. If Flayn was here I´m sure that she would have been enjoying already this conversation" Linhardt said yawning. Monica was also missing since she had a scheduled meeting with Seteth.

"I can dance with you if you want, Caspar. I can show you how we dance in Brigid!"

"Oh, thanks" Caspar said, although he appeared to be a bit uncomfortable with Petra´s genuine smile.

"In case that you wish to dance with me I will be there for you Lady Edelgard"

"Hubie, I don´t think that your services will be required since Edie will be dancing with the Professor, right Edie?" Dorothea said with a teasing smile. "Professor, are you listening?"

"Oh, sorry Dorothea. I was thinking about something" The last days he had been searching about the links between Lord Arundel and the Church, but the more information he gathered the more bizarre the situation appeared to be. It was highly unusual that a person could act so differently in a matter of years and he had barely spent any time in the monastery after he suddenly stopped the funding of it. According to some of the officials of the Church it was surprising to see Lord Arundel again after all the time that had passed.

"You should be paying attention; we are your dear students after all right? Promise me that tomorrow you will enjoy the night as much as I´m planning to do"

"Understood"

"It´s not an order, but I will remember your words, Professor"

"By the way, I have a proposal for all of you" Edelgard said looking at everyone. "How about we meet again this day after 5 years?"

"A class reunion sounds great to me!" Caspar shouted

"In five years the monastery will commemorate the 1000th anniversary since its foundation. It will surely be a date to remember since preparations for that day are already taking place, although I wonder how much we will have changed after all that time" Hubert said with an analytical look to all of them.

"It will surely be a great event. I don´t find any reasons to oppose meeting all of you again, but even if in a few months our paths will be separated for a while it doesn´t mean that we can´t remain in contact"

"I promise to write to you, Dorothea!"

"That´s very sweet Petra, I´m already looking forward to the letters coming from you"

"After 5 years I don´t know what will happen to all of us, but I´m sure about one thing; the moment all of us return to this place the mere fact of reuniting again will be a reason enough to celebrate"

"I wouldn´t hold my breath, Edelgard. I´m not even sure if the Professor will be here after all that time. You were a mercenary, right? Perhaps he will want to go to another place or he will leave in an extremely long expedition" Linhardt said as he looked at him.

"Even if he isn´t working here anymore I´m confident he will return, right?" Edelgard said, looking at him, making his heart ache combined with a strange feeling of sadness. In five years most of them will have already assumed positions of responsibility within their different families, but a part of him wanted to see them again no matter what.

"Of course" he said with a faint smile. "I´m looking forward to seeing all of you once again"

"Don´t forget, my Teacher. Even if the festival were to cancel I will return to this place" Edelgard said looking at him directly into the eye.

"Even if the festival were to cancel" he thought as he looked at all of them. "Even if something like that happened I will be here for all of you"

"It is a promise then" she said with a faint smile.

…

The wind was furiously blowing outside, but the inside of her room was comfortably warm, only the sound of her fountain pen could be heard as she wrote a letter meant to be sent to the capital.

"Your comment was really sharp Lady Edelgard. If our plans are meant to succeed I highly doubt that a festival of such magnitude would take place, but in that case I doubt that all of us will reunite again"

"I didn´t say it with a hidden meaning, Hubert. I really meant what I said, even if it is unlikely that it will come to an end" If the war she was preparing was quick enough they could reunite again, but her enemy wasn´t a force easy to defeat and she wasn´t sure that most of them will react the same after said time had passed. "A promise doomed to be broken, but a promise nevertheless" she sighed.

"In the case of those from the Empire, I´m confident that they will obey your command. I highly doubt that they would dare to oppose us since most of their families reside in the capital. The only ones that give me doubts are Petra and of course the Professor. No matter how much I observe him there is something I can´t completely understand about him. If I were you I would prepare for the time we have to oppose him and the rest of the forces of the Church"

"You really doubt that he can join my cause" she sighed as she continued writing her letter.

"I must analyze every threat to our cause in a rational way. It is true that the Professor appears to be fond of us, even me" Hubert chuckled. "But sometimes the worst treasons can be found behind sincere smiles. The fight we are preparing is something that will not be easily accepted by those with power in the current order"

"If I had an easier way to achieve my objectives I would certainly have tried a different approach, but now is not the time to think about ifs, that time is already gone. In a matter of months I will turn into the next Emperor of the Adrestian Empire and I will need every resource to end the war that is approaching quickly and the Professor could be of certain help on that matter" There were more reasons to it, but she didn´t want to horrify Hubert with her inner thoughts.

"My words about him remain the same. It is a dangerous bet what you are doing, Lady Edelgard. The Sword of the Creator is a weapon of great power, but how can we know that he will lend us strength? The shadow of the archbishop is long on him and we already know that she wouldn´t step out of power willingly by simply asking"

"Even if he doesn´t trust the Flame Emperor, he doesn´t think it was the mastermind behind everything that happened in Remire. As unlikely as it could be, I need all the strength I can gather if I want my dreams to turn into reality. The less we depend on them, the better. Do you know anything about their whereabouts? The fact that they have presence in all the territories make me suspect that there must be multiple bases of their kin scattered across the entire Fódlan"

"I have the same suspicions than you, Lady Edelgard, but my capacity to investigate them is currently limited. However, I have the feeling that their arrogance will be their undoing. They think that they have everything under control, but the moment they expect it the less we will fall on them and make them pay for all the suffering they have already committed"

"The time of retribution will arrive, but for now we will have to endure it" she nodded at him. "And when the time comes what will you be doing, my Teacher?" The thought of facing him in the battlefield was troublesome, but even if he was him who stood on his way, she didn´t plan to back down. "Even if I have to sacrifice everything I hold dear I will continue my path. There is no other option" she thought as she looked through the window. The world was freezing outside, but the absence of clouds made her feel calm.

…..

"Tomorrow is going to be the biggest event of the month at the monastery. By the way some of them are talking it appears to be that it is the mating season" Kronya said before him, her real form disguised under the skin of an innocent girl, a girl that had quite a resilient body when they prepared her skin to be used by one of them.

"Your moment is quickly approaching Kronya. Make sure to transform as many students as you can. I want to be certain about the extent of how many beasts we can turn into our new weapons" The Titanus were certainly a weapon easier to handle, but they were expensive to produce and their mere presence could alert their ancient enemy about their presence.

"Don´t worry, Thales. I´ve made lots of friends during my stay at the monastery. I´m sure they will be lending a hand soon, although I don´t think they will enjoy what is going to happen to them"

"Are any suspicions about our objectives?" Kronya wasn´t an important element within their ranks, but if she was taken prisoner they would be forced to take drastic actions.

"Not at all. A few days ago, a group of knight checked the surroundings of the area, but nothing more. Some of them were muttering something about thieves so I suppose that they were just making sure that there weren´t any thieves that could spoil their celebration. They won´t be causing any troubles. I have been true to my world and I haven´t killed any of them yet"

"It could be that the pass of time had shortened the vision of our ancient enemy" Solon said looking at him. "The fact that Kronya is still allowed to be there it is a proof of it"

"Even if it is true we shouldn´t be the ones to indulge ourselves. They almost destroyed us and the rest of the world once. Even if they are weaker so we are. This is a battle where the patient will eventually win" he then looked at Kronya. "I have high expectations. I hope that you don´t disappoint me. Doing so could end badly for you. You know what happens to those that fail"

"Don´t worry Thales. I will do whatever you order me. I´m all yours"

"Return to your position. We will talk after the experiment takes place" he said as he dispatched her. The forest where they were talking gave them enough cover to avoid being observed but undesirable visitors, but it was risky nevertheless.

"Are you sure to proceed like this, master Thales? The artificial Crest stones we have created are just prototypes"

"In that case the forces of our enemy will be the ones to take care of them. Don´t worry Solon, I have spent quite the time perfecting them, I hope that you have done what I have ordered you"

"Of course Master Thales. I have spent all this time investigating about the Fell Star and its current host. There are no exceptions to the way relics work so it is certain that the only crest of Flames existing in this world is inside him. It is highly probable that they intend to make her appear again, but I have found a possibility to stop its return from happening. A perfect opportunity to end the menace lingering on this world"

"Interesting, tell me"

"We could incarcerate the Fell Star into the void, into the place we have come to know as the abyss of Zahras"

"Zahras" he thought, a name that no matter how much time passed it was still painful to hear. "Once it was known as Zahras, the city of sunlight, the capital of all humankind, a place where peace treaties were achieved during centuries, a sacred place. However, in our arrogance we awakened the shadow, an evil capable of taking the entire world. That place was the result of our ambitions and mistakes and had been sealed to avoid spreading its corruption to the rest of the world for thousands of years" That place was the painful memory of what they could have achieved and how it ended badly for them. It was a place that most of the Argarthans ignored, yet those who knew about it were wise enough to keep silent about it. "That place had been sealed for thousands of years for a reason. Do you think that you can control what is hiding in the shadows? The path to Zahras is hidden by the shadows and in the shadows may rest for the eternity those who disturb the silence of the cursed city"

"You don´t really have to worry about it, Master Thales. I know the risks that entail the spell, but creating a small portal in a place with enough magic energy could be everything we need to get rid of the fell star. That place is cursed; even a powerful being like the fell star would succumb to the pure dark that inhabits that place"

"If there is no other option go ahead with it, but it will certainly take some time to prepare it. Accessing the void had never been an easy task; even if some treasures from our brilliant past are still there countless Argarthans had been devoured by the void as they tried to search for them". He still remembered those painful events as if the city was in front of him. The ivory walls stained in dark and in a spectral green, the screams and the dear ones he lost back in that day. The city of sunlight turned into a living hell and the only option was to seal the place away from the known world. With the loss of the capital of humankind started the decline of humanity, which accelerated when those who are not divine awakened. With their defeat during the primordial war they were exiled into the depths of earth, but some Argarthans still remembered the warmth of the sun as a friend lost a long time ago.

"I will inform you about my progress" he bowed before him.

"Don´t disappoint me. We should be leaving this place. I´m sure that Cornelia will want to inform me about what is currently happening in the Holy Kingdom. War is approaching and we need to have the best use of our puppets until we get rid of them"

"Only a bit more and all our suffering during the different ages of this world will have a meaning. I can´t wait to see the future you have prepared for all of us"

"I will only return the world to what it used to be, before those who are not divine tried to destroy everything we held dear. This world is ours and we will make them realize that no matter how much time passes the time of retribution will come to them" he said as he warped to the cold lands of the north, to the place where Cornelia was waiting for him.

….

**12/25**

The outside world was freezing but it wasn´t snowing anymore. After all the blizzards they had to endure during the month, it was relieving to see how nature calmed itself. The calm weather contrasted with his surroundings. As he walked around the monastery he realized that lots of soldiers of the Church were making the final preparations for the celebration that would take place at the end of the day. Among them he could see his father.

"Morning, son. Are you prepared to dance with those fancy folks?"

"Good morning father. I will do my best" After all the training he had under the guide of Edelgard he was confident enough to handle a few sessions of dancing, although the fact he would be dancing before all the monastery was a bit embarrassing.

"Embarrassing? That a seasoned warrior like you feels uncomfortable by something like that it is very interesting, but there is no coming back. Let´s see what happens tonight" Sothis said as she got up from her throne.

"I was sure you would be saying something like that" his father laughed as he rubbed his hair.

"Did you find anything in the old Chapel?"

"Nothing in particular. There were signs of someone being there, but apart from that nothing more. Those thieves must have gone to another place. I can´t really blame them. Winter is harsh and some of them may have tried to sneak into the monastery territories to have a shelter to protect them from the fury of the winter"

"Jeralt! In a day like this you shouldn´t be talking about work. You are free to talk about it any other day, but today it is too important for something like that"

"You really are fond of dancing, don´t you Alois?"

"Of course I am. I have a lot of fond memories related to it, but at days like this I don´t mind watching the abilities of those we had been protecting until now"

"You really are an interesting being, Alois" Shamir said joining their conversation. "I wouldn´t expect a warrior to be so refined"

"You are too serious for your own good Shamir. Even though I´ve tried everything to make you smile with my jokes it doesn´t appear to work!"

"That´s only because your jokes aren´t funny"

"Shamir is right about that, Alois. You are a great warrior, but you should stop doing those things you aren´t good at"

"Being praised and criticized at the same time it is really difficult to handle" Alois sighed. "Anyway, we should continue our work. We need to have everything prepared before the day ends"

"We will talk later, son"

"See you later, father"

After leaving the main hall behind he wasn´t sure about what to do. He still had plenty of time to spare and classes weren´t meant to start until the end of all celebrations.

"Where are all the students?" Sothis interrupted him. "I can´t see any of them, only members of the Church"

"They must be preparing for the events of this night" The other day he was able to take a glimpse of Annette and Mercedes chasing Ingrid and talking about how beautiful she will be the night of the Ball.

"In that case why aren´t you preparing?"

"I´ve already practiced and I have nothing more to do"

"Wait, are saying you are going to assist the ball with the clothes you usually wear to give your lectures?"

"Why not? I don´t see any problem with that" His usual clothes were comfortable enough and Seteth hasn´t told him anything about a particular etiquette for the Ball.

"The mere thought that you think it is going to be ok wearing something like that astonishes me" Sothis sighed. "If it weren´t for me you would be in quite a trouble. It is obvious that you can´t assist wearing something like that. You must change your outfit!"

"But I don´t think I have any suitable clothes" He had plenty of battle armor and equipment prepared for his expeditions, but he didn´t have any clothes especially prepared for an event like that.

"In that case the only solution is to ask for help. How about you ask your colleagues? I´m sure they will have spared clothes for you. Hurry up!"

"Ok, there is no need to be so pushy about it"

"If I wasn´t here you would be helpless. You should be thankful instead of complaining" Sothis said crossing her arms on her stone throne.

After his conversation with Sothis he decided to head to the upper levels of the main building of the monastery. He decided to try first with Manuela since she had been extremely excited with all the preparations taking place in this month. Knocking the door of her room he didn´t have to wait too much until the door opened before him.

"Oh Byleth. What a pleasant surprise. I didn´t expect seeing you so early. Has something happened?"

"I planned to go to the Ball with these clothes, but it seems it is unsuitable for such an event and I don´t have any spared clothes to use"

"Were you really planning to go like that? I´m glad that someone has told you about it. I guess that you are a mercenary to your core" she sighed. "Since I´m a woman I don´t have plenty of clothes suitable for you, but I do have some accessories that could look good on you. Wait here. I will go to Hanneman´s place, I´m sure that he will have something to give to you" she said as she ran to her destination.

He decided to look through the window as he waited. The grounds surrounding the monastery were shining because of the sunlight, giving the impression that the soil was trying to compete against the brilliance of the sun.

"Hello Byleth. Manuela had told me that you were in quite a trouble, but I´m glad we will be able to resolve this problem now. I´m sure Seteth would highly disapprove if you were to assist the main event of this month with your usual clothes. This suit is a bit old, but its quality is magnificent. I hope that you can give it a better use than I" Hanneman said as he showed him a black suit surrounded by an elegant aura. The areas of the shoulders had golden motives that gave it a more martial attitude, a decoration he had seen in the clothes of some nobles.

"It is a beautiful suit, Hanneman"

"I´m sure it is. I wore it when my dear sister married, although that marriage brought more pain than anything else" he said as his face saddened a bit. "However, everything is in the past now. I´m sure that it will look good on you, but there are some areas that might require some fixing"

"Not only that, Hanneman. This is the golden opportunity for us to make sure that our handsome colleague is the center of attention of the entire monastery. You must take this opportunity to impress the person you have grown fond of, Byleth"

"It isn´t necessary to make such effort, Manuela"

"Are you feeling embarrassed? How cute! That encourages me to do my best. Will you help me, Hanneman?"

"Of course Manuela. Don't worry Byleth. Your mere appearance is quite solid by itself but there are some things we could enhance for this particular day" he said as he adjusted his monocle.

"I thought I would have plenty of time to spare, but it seems that my free time ends now" he thought.

"You will thank me later. I´m sure that a particular someone will be pleased with the final result" Sothis said with a mischievous smile as she watched the scene unfolding before her.

….

"It took some time, but you are really handsome Byleth! Take a look" Manuela said offering him her own pocket mirror.

When he saw his own reflection he appeared to be a completely different person to the one that had entered the room. The elegant black clothes he was wearing made him look like one of the nobles he had served when he was travelling across Fódlan along his father. The cape he was wearing was also dark, but its inner area was on a crimson color that greatly contrasted with its general outfit as it did the golden motives on his shoulders and sleeves. Manuela had also taken care of his hair, which was unusually tided, applying a substance that made it easier to stay at that form.

"Thank you for your help"

"You don´t need to thank me, Byleth. It was really funny to help you to prepare for tonight´s event. You were already handsome since the first time I met you, but with this appearance…I´m sure that you will captivate lots of hearts tonight. You have already stolen mine" Manuela said with a charming smile.

"Manuela is right; since we are colleagues it is only natural to lend each other a hand. You have provided me so much information for my information that not even an entire lifetime would be enough to compensate for it. Allow me to fix this area just a bit" he said as he put a red rose in one of his pockets, securing it with a golden brooch. "With this all the preparations are completed. I´m sure that you will have an enjoyable night"

"That was a perfect idea, Hanneman. Before the night ends I hope you can give that rose to the person that has captivated your heart, until then take good care of it" Manuela said winking an eye.

"I´m confident that he won´t be the only one to be especially charming tonight, Manuela. Your dress is incredibly beautiful"

"I have reserved it for this time of the year. I have to be prepared to give everything I have if I want to succeed in the battle of love. You are quite elegant too, Hanneman. From time to time, you are really nice"

"I´m usually nice. The only problem is that we have completely different personalities, but today is not the day to spend our time in small quarrels like that" Hanneman laughed as he offered his arm to accompany Manuela outside the room. With no much time left before with the rest of the students Byleth followed them in silence. They arrived in no time to the gates of the main hall of the monastery. The place was completely deserted, since most of the students appeared to be busy with last minute preparations for the main event of the month.

"Greetings Professor Hanneman, Professor Manuela and… Are you Professor Byleth? I almost thought you were a completely different person. You are so handsome with those clothes! I must admit that I envy you" The gatekeeper greeted them. For the occasion he was wearing more comfortable clothes and his usual helmet was nowhere to be seen, allowing him to see his full face.

"Your clothes are really nice too" he said nodding at him.

"If you say something like that I´m sure that lots of people will notice" he nodded smiling.

"It is cold, but the absence of clouds will allow us to witness the beauty of the moon at its fullest. Dancing under the moonlight, how romantic" Manuela said with a dreamy look.

"This month has been colder than the previous year, but since we will be staying inside the building I don´t think we will have any problems. Anyway, I will cast some fire magic to make sure that we don´t catch a cold as we wait outside. Look some of the students had started to arrive" he said as he casted some magic, casting away the cold from their surroundings.

The first ones to arrive were Annette and Mercedes, which were accompanying an extremely embarrassed Ingrid.

"Good evening everyone" Mercedes greeted them with her usual smile. "Professor you are really handsome today. I hope that you can dance with me if you have enough time"

"Count me too, Professor! I´m sure it will be a night to remember, right Ingrid?"

"I don´t even know why I agreed to take part into the preparations for this evening. I´m more comfortable wielding a sword"

"You have just sounded like Felix. Don´t be so boring" Annette complained. "We will see you later, Professor. Until then!"

"Take care"

After that most students started to enter the main building. Even someone like Caspar was wearing what appeared to be its best clothes as he vividly chattered accompanied by Raphael and a sleepy Linhardt. He was also pleased to see Bernadetta, even though she appeared to had been persuaded by Dorothea and Petra.

"Hello Teach. I was wondering who was that handsome guy standing next to the Professors but it was you all along. You really did a good job, Manuela"

"You are really sharp if you know it was my doing, but Hanneman also took part in it. You look really handsome too" Claude was also wearing a suit and in his yellow cape he could see a deer that matched with the colors of his house. With those clothes he appeared to be more formal than usual.

"Sorry for making you wait" Dimitri said as he approached them. His usual cape appeared to be changed by a sturdier one made out of fur. He was also wearing a pair of dark leather clothes and a pendant symbolizing the Blue Lion of its house could be seen in front of his chest.

"Don´t worry, Dimitri. I´m always thankful to have your company" Manuela said with a charming smile.

"With that cape you are really the only one prepared for this weather. Thanks the Goddess that we will be staying inside" Claude laughed.

"I like your appearance too, Claude. Yours too, Professor" he said nodding at him. He wanted to talk with him about Lord Arundel, but he knew that now wasn´t the most suitable moment. "Perhaps I can find a moment to talk with him tonight" he thought.

"My Teacher, sorry for making you wait"

Hearing her voice he turned his head to the origin of it and as he did so his heart appeared to stop.

He had never seen her like that. Her dress was of a crimson color which contrasted with the golden color of the double-headed eagle on it. The area of her shoulders was revealed, but it was partially hidden by her hair, which fell on both sides. He could see that she was wearing the earrings he had seen her bought when they were on their trip to Fhirdiad. Her usual gloves were nowhere to be seen, revealing her delicate yet strong hands. When she looked at him, he couldn´t avoid feeling strange inside him.

"You are really beautiful, Edelgard"

"My Teacher, there is no need to saying something like that in front of everyone" she said as her cheeks stained a bit in red. "Although I must admit that you are especially handsome today" Her words made him extremely happy, the strange feeling spreading through his body.

"So this was the secret weapon of the Empire, uh?" Claude laughed.

"For once you seem to have taken your responsibility seriously, Claude. I must compliment you for your appearance, you too Dimitri"

"Well now that everyone has already arrived it is time to enter the main hall. I´m sure that everyone can´t wait to see its beginning" Manuela said as she offered her hand to Claude and entered the hall. She was closely followed by Hanneman and Dimitri and him and Edelgard. He could feel her warmth as he reached for her hand and followed the rest of the Professors and Lords to the center of the Hall.

As they entered it everyone grew silent waiting for the music to begin. As it started he gently placed his hand on her waist as they started to dance in the middle of the hall. Even though more pairings started to join them his eyes were completely focused on her as if he was victim of an enchantment. The fragrance he had grown fond of was wrapping him as the music continued its course.

"You are doing really well" Edelgard said with a gentle smile.

"That´s because I´m with you" he said as their faces came even closer. He had spent most of his life fighting against countless enemies and he had faced death more than once yet he had never felt as nervous as he did now. "This might be the most difficult battlefield of my life" he thought as they turned around the center of the Hall, most students already alongside them. Looking at her amethyst eyes he wondered how it would feel to drown in them.

"You got really hit by this one here, uh?" Sothis mischievously laughed watching the scene from her stone throne. Your range of emotions has really awakened since the first time we exchanged words" Hearing her words he couldn´t avoid smiling.

"I must admit that I´ve grown fond of your smile. Looking at your smile I feel tempted to indulge myself a bit"

"You are free to indulge yourself as long as you want to, Edelgard. If I´m here dancing it is because of you" He wished they could stay like that more time, but he knew that the melody was coming to an end. As the final notes of the melody resonated through the hall they separated. Doing the same that he saw, he gently placed a kiss on one of her hands.

"Thank you for this dance, Edelgard" he said as he looked at her. The moment he saw her face he realized it was quickly blossoming into a beautiful red color.

"T-Thank you, but there was no need to do something like that in front of everyone" she said as she turned her gaze away from me.

"This dance is already over, Professor" Hubert said appearing behind Edelgard, a sinister aura emanating from him. "There is no need to prolong this physical contact any longer. Lady Edelgard, may I have this dance with you?"

"Teach, how about we dance now? No need to kiss my hands, though" Claude laughed as he offered his hand to him. With no reason to oppose he joined him as the music reassumed.

"Tonight appears to be quite promising, don´t you think? Everyone appears to be more relaxed than usual"

"This month has been atypical to say the least" Recalling everything that had happened during the month, he had to admit that he enjoyed taking all the different activities with his students.

"By the way, Teach. I heard from one of the knights that someone had entered the area known as the old Chapel. Do you know anything about it? It seems to be a place close to the monastery, but I haven´t figured it out"

"It is to the north of the monastery, in an area covered by a forest. I´ve never been there, but my father explained it to me. There is nothing of valor there so Seteth thinks that they are just a group of thieves roaming the area"

"Nothing really interesting then, uh. Thanks for the information. This place is really big. I´ve always had that feeling since the moment we went to help you against the Death Knight and the so called Flame Emperor. I wonder how much of it is still in the shadows" he said with a thoughtful look. "Sorry, even though it is a day like this I was talking about a bunch of nonsense. Let´s enjoy ourselves for the time being". After he had finished dancing with him, he turned around and saw the archbishop gently smiling at him.

"May I have this dance with you?" she said offering her hand.

"It will be a pleasure" he said as he accepted her offering. If people thought that dancing with Rhea was strange, no one told him. Despite never seeing her dancing she appeared to be a capable one.

"I haven´t danced for a long time, but I remember some of it" she gently smiled as if she had just read her mind. The placing or her hands was more intimate that the standard way most nobles used to dance. "I have a question to ask you, have you finally grown used to living here?"

Thinking about all the events that had passed during these months, he didn´t regret staying here with his father, the moments he was able to spend with all of his students holding a special place inside his heart.

"I am. I have no regrets to have chosen to work here" he gently smiled.

"I hope that one day you will be able to call this place home" she smiled although he felt that those words had more meaning than what appeared to have.

As the music continued he had to dance with most of the students although his eyes were always attracted to her.

"No need to be jealous, you can dance with her at any time. I´m sure she would agree to dance with you again"

"I´m not jealous" he thought as he continued dancing with his students.

…

Taking advantage of one of the breaks between the different dances he decided to catch some fresh air outside of the main hall. The illumination from the inside was potent enough to cast shadows in the middle of the night and the moon was in a beautiful shape, almost completely full.

"Why are you running away? I´m sure that a lot of students are still willing to have a dance with you. It must be difficult to be so popular" Sothis mischievously laughed.

"I don´t think I´m popular"

"Really? My eyes tell me otherwise. You had been dragged away not only by the dear students you have been teaching all this time, but also by those of the lower levels. The way some of them looked at you…You are certainly causing more than one headache to some of them. So troublesome"

He was about to reply when he saw Dimitri leaving the main hall as well. Curious about the reasons of him leaving he decided to approach him.

"Professor, what are you doing here? I thought you were still at the main hall"

"I was just catching a break. What are you doing here? Did you already dance with Edelgard?" As the Ball developed he had caught glimpses of him looking at her, but he didn´t see them dancing together.

"There is no need to say something like that, Professor. I´m not that fond of dancing, even though she was the one to teach me"

"She taught you how to dance?"

"Yes, when she was brought to the Holy Kingdom by his uncle. My stepmother is her biological mother, although back at that time I didn´t know about it since she treated me as her own child. Even though our backgrounds and the cultures of our countries are completely different we were friends for a year. When we first met, we didn´t know about the different worlds we came from, but I remember seeing her accompanied by Lord Arundel. Back at that day he frequented the castle of Fhirdiad and was constantly discussing some important matters with my father so we spent our time playing until they finished their reunions"

"Why did they go to the capital of the Holy Kingdom?" he knew that it was related to the insurrection of the Seven, yet he was unsure about the reasons that could have made Lord Arundel run away from the Empire.

"Lord Arundel appeared to be afraid of the possible repercussions that could happen to her niece. The Empire was politically unstable a few years ago with a matter that affected the imperial family itself. I don´t know all the details surrounding it, but Lord Arundel appeared to be trying to permanently establish in the Holy Kingdom, at least that is what I thought when I heard some of the conversation between my father and Arundel"

"But he then suddenly changed his opinion and they returned to the Empire"

"You are right about it. It seems that you have realized that I´m too puzzled by that matter" he sighed. "You didn´t see him back at that time, but he completely changed his opinion about staying any time longer in the Holy Kingdom. What happened between my father and him is something that will never see the light, but there is no point to talk about it in a night like this" he said as he looked to the moon. "As I was telling you, Edelgard taught me how to dance. She was quite an exigent Professor, but I owe her a lot for her lessons. She has always been of a difficult person to deal with, but that is something you must have realized by now since you are her Professor" he laughed. "It is really strange to have conversations of the past, but I don´t regret telling you these things"

"If she wasn´t for her I would have done a foul of myself tonight"

"She is really the strict type, but her teachings weren´t wrong the least. That year we spent together was really funny. It makes me think about a time when life appeared to be simpler"

"The Tragedy of Duscur was a really regrettable event, but I´m glad that you could survive"

"The past really conditions our present and that is what it gives me strength to change the future. That event was really regrettable but the reaction of the Holy Kingdom was excessive. The Holy Kingdom has spent most of these years massacring the inhabitants of Duscur. Dedue is only one of those lucky enough to be alive yet, but the suffering born out of that event hasn´t found its way to all of those that took part into it. When I turn into the next ruler of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus I will make sure that those who committed that atrocious crime will pay with their lives and those who unjustly suffered receive something in compensation"

"I hope that you can bring stability and prosperity to the Holy Kingdom" he said patting his shoulder. "If all of you get along I´m sure that more stability will be brought to all of Fódlan"

"I will try to be a fair ruler to everyone and I will try to get along with both of them, although sometimes I don´t get what is Claude planning to do. I don´t seem to get his way of thinking" he sighed.

"You will get used to it" he smiled

"By the way, do you know what kind of gift I gave to her when our ways departed?"

Looking at him he thought that the thing most suitable would be…

"A dagger?"

"You are really sharp, Professor. I did give her a dagger, but it wasn´t a present without a reason. In the lands of Faerghus it is a tradition to give a dagger symbolizing the wish to cut your own path. It really suits our culture since most of the students here that come from the Holy Kingdom learned to use a sword before they were able to read. I know that she will be the next ruler of the Adrestian Empire and lots of responsibilities will restrict her own liberty, but I have the hope that she can cut her own path. To be fair, I wonder if the dagger that you have next to you holds the same meaning" he said looking to the dagger he was wearing on his belt, a present from Edelgard during his first months as the professor of the Black Eagles. "Although it´s just a story from the past, she must have forgotten by now"

"Looking at her I´m sure that she will be able to cut her own path" he said nodding at him.

"I didn´t expect to talk about the past like that, Professor. I guess that it must because it is this night" he said as he saw Dedue approaching them. "I guess that I will return shortly to the main hall. Will you accompany us, Professor?"

"I think I will stay a bit more here"

"In that case see you later. You must be really tired after all that you have danced" he nodded at him as he left accompanied by Dedue.

"A really fruitful conversation, although I would prefer something more beautiful than a dagger as a departing gift" Sothis said inside his head. "What will you do now? The insides of the monastery must be full of students eager to dance with you. Will you answer to their hope, mister popular?"

"That would be a bit troublesome"

"In that case how about going to a place far away from it? The Goddess Tower comes to my mind as a suitable place for it"

"The Goddess Tower…" It was certainly a place that was usually out of bonds, but according to the gatekeeper at this time of the year had a particular meaning. "Well, it´s not like I will be seeing anyone" he thought as he headed to the Goddess Tower.

…

The surroundings of the Goddess Tower were calm as he entered the tower. The lower level of the tower appeared to be tidied up since the last time he had been there. After climbing through the stairs he approached one of the windows of the tower and looked at the grounds of the monastery. The lights coming from the main building and the moonlight made him able to see groups of students at the surroundings of the main building. He could also hear the faint sound of the music coming from the main building.

"I wonder how they are doing all of them" He was sure that people like Dorothea were enjoying their time, although he couldn´t avoid wondering what they were doing people like Caspar and Bernadetta, especially the latter one. "I hope she can overcome the fear she has" he thought as he looked at the moon.

"So you were here"

As he turned around he saw her standing a few meters from him. She was still wearing the dress of the Ball and the moonlight made her hair look like silver. Why was she here, could it be that she knew about that story related to the tower?

"Were you waiting for someone?"

"I was waiting for you" He wasn´t sure why he said it but he did it nevertheless.

"Without telling me in advance? I´m glad that I came here by coincidence then"

"Do you have something to do?"

"Nothing in particular. I thought about talking with you, but you were nowhere to be seen so I finally decided to come to this place. The Goddess Tower…If I must tell the truth this place has a special meaning for me since it is the place where my parents fell in love. My father studied in this place a lifetime ago. After graduating, he assumed his position as a ruler of the Adrestian Empire and returned a few years later to this place as a formal visit. Perhaps moved by nostalgia he entered this tower where he met my mother, which was a student of that year at the academy. The moment they met they madly fell in love. It was the first time they felt like that, their first love"

"Their first love?"

"My father had already fulfilled his responsibilities as the ruler of the Empire and strategically married. The need for a strong heir is quite exigent in the Empire so he also had plenty of concubines, but his feelings were genuine when he fell in love with my mother. Even if she turned into one of the many concubines he had I´m confident there was love between them"

"How about your first love?"

"I want you to know more about me so I will tell you. A person whose name I´ve long ago forgotten, the child from one of the nobles of the Kingdom"

"A noble from the kingdom? Could it be Dimitri?" he asked. After hearing the story of the first time they met he had the feeling that he could be the person Edelgard was talking about.

"I can´t really recall its name or face since some of my memories from that time seemed to have faded away, but that is in the past already. It is just one memory from simpler times. I don´t have those feelings any longer"

"Even if you were able to meet that person again?"

"Even in that case everything is in the past now. I cannot long for the past, the present and the future is everything I can aim for"

"I see" He admired her resolution but he had the fear that he will eventually turn into a memory of simpler times too.

"Now that I´ve already talked about my past, how about you? Do you have any particular memories you could tell my about, like your first love…" she said looking at him with a renewed interest, as if she was especially interested in hearing his answer.

"That question should count as a critical hit, what are you going to do, Byleth?"

It was obvious that Sothis was right. He had never experienced something like that before, but he was sure now that it could be considered love. However, he was afraid that admitting his feelings about her could create a new distance between them. In that case…

"Could I make you one more question before?"

"I don´t really mind. If there is something I can answer I will tell you"

"When the time comes will you marry for political reasons or for love? In case that you have to decide which one will you decide?"

"That question is certainly a difficult one to answer. If a political marriage can bring a brighter future to Fódlan so be it, even if I have to sacrifice my own happiness in the process" although the tone of her voice was reluctant.

It was the answer he expected, but hearing it coming from her saddened him.

"I wish you could live a simpler life, Edelgard. A life where you didn´t have to sacrifice the things you hold dear"

"The feeling is mutual, but reality can prove to be disappointing at times…Anyway, what is your answer?"

"Please, don´t ask me"

"If you say something like that I feel inclined to ask about it" she smiled

"I´m sorry Edelgard I don´t have any stories to tell you"

"You don´t need to apologize, my Teacher. I´m sure that with everything you have experienced in your mercenary life you have plenty of interesting stories to tell even if they are not related to this topic, but I´m sure that we will have plenty of time to discuss about them" she said as she approached him and looked to the sky. "The moon is especially beautiful tonight and the wind even though it is cold it is gentle enough inside of this tower. I think we should return, plenty of students are willing to dance with you. You are really popular, my Teacher" she said with a fond smile.

"That was highly unexpected"

"Really? I beg to differ, but I think that some of them would hold a grudge against me if I monopolize you any longer" she giggled.

"I don´t really mind if it is you. When you came here did you see any people around?"

"No as far as I can recall"

"In that case would you like to dance with me once again? The last dance of the night" he said as he bowed before her, offering his hand.

"It will be my pleasure" she said as she accepted his hand.

Even if there wasn´t music to accompany their movements it didn't matter as they slowly moved around the central room of the tower, the moonlight the only witness of their dance.

"Your movements have really improved in a matter of weeks, my Teacher"

"You taught me well, if you weren´t here I would have failed miserably at the Ball"

"There is no need to belittle yourself like that. I taught you the basics, but from there you continued to improve. I must admit that I´m proud of you. Your efforts has made you a capable dancer, although I must admit the formality of this kind of dances can be exasperating for those who are not used to them"

"With your guide it was entertaining at least"

"I´m glad to hear that coming from you" she gently smiled as they continued their dance.

After a while they finally returned to the area next to the window, their shadows casted against the wall behind them by the moonlight.

"Thank you for this last dance" he said as he kissed her hand.

"You would be quite a sensation in the court, my Teacher" she said as she toyed with her hair. "Although that would be problematic. Anyway, even if today this is our last dance, I have the hope that we can have more opportunities from now on. If that is ok to you, of course"

"It will certainly be a pleasure" he said smiling to her.

"It is a promise then" she smiled although she shivered a bit as the wind from the outside entered the room. Noticing that, he put his own cape over her. "You should be careful about your health, I don´t want you to catch a cold"

"You are very nice to me, but that applies to you too. In that case we should share it. Will you escort me to my room? I´m already tired and I don´t think I will be dancing anymore"

"Of course, I don´t have any problem with that" he said as he approached her. Together under his cape they left the tower of the Goddess and headed to the dormitories of the students. He could hear from the distance the laughter and music coming from the main hall of the monastery and he couldn´t avoid smiling to the sound of it.

"Most of them must be there yet. I wonder what is going to be the look of their faces tomorrow"

"I´m curious about it too. Most of them had high expectations from it, it was only natural that they wanted to enjoy the night to its fullest" A few moments later they arrived to the dormitories of the students.

"Thank you for escorting me. If you return to the main hall I hope that you can enjoy the remaining time at its fullest"

"I hope that you can get enough rest, Edelgard and thank you for teaching me how to dance properly"

"There is no need to thank me about it. After all, you had been assisting me all this time"

As she was about to open the door behind her he recalled something that wanted to give her.

"Wait a moment, Edelgard" he said as he offered him the rose that acted as a decoration of his suit.

"Oh a rose, is it really ok for me to keep it?" she said as she hesitantly looked at it.

"I would be happy if you keep it. Even if it will eventually disappear it will be a memory of those times we have spent together. Consider it a present for everything that has happened until now"

"A memory of the events of this night… Thank you, my Teacher. I will take good care of it. That way even if the dawn comes I will be sure that everything that has happened was real. Good night, Byleth. I will see you tomorrow" she said with a genuine smile.

With nothing more to do he decided to return to the main hall, although he didn´t want to dance anymore.

"How boring, if I were you I would take every chance I have to dance. You are so lucky to have a body of your own"

"It would certainly be interesting to see you dancing" he smiled

"Are you implying that I can´t dance as well as you? How disrespectful! I would show you, but I guess that I can´t given my circumstances. Look your father and the guy with a moustache are over there"

"You mean Alois"

"Whatever"

His father and Alois were sitting in one of the corners of the main hall, watching the dance of the students that still remained there. Ferdinand was one of the students that still continued dancing with Mercedes. Petra appeared to be showing Dorothea typical dances from Brigid, their lively movements catching the attention of those who were already resting. He could also see Catherine and Shamir throwing daggers to each other as Caspar cheered them.

"Good evening son, you danced quite well. I must admit I was impressed. Your dear students must have taught you well" he said patting his shoulder as he sat between them.

"They really did"

"This year the level has been quite high. I´m really impressed, but I guess that it is only natural with so many interesting individuals that have come to study this year. It is a pity that I couldn´t teach you some of my dancing techniques, but I was pleased to see your abilities"

"Time passes really quickly" Jeralt said as he emptied his jar of beer. Last year I couldn´t imagine being here, but I guess that sometimes we don´t were our paths are leading us. Seeing all these students filled with hope is really reassuring"

"You just sounded like an old man, Jeralt" Alois laughed.

"You aren´t that much behind me, Alois" Jeralt laughed back. "I´ve never been a great dancer, but I´m fond of the times I danced with your mother. Those were good times, even if years have passed I remember those days as if they were yesterday" he sighed. "I hope that one day you can dance like we did with the person you choose to spend the rest of your life"

"When that time comes I will tell you" he said nodding at him.

"It isn´t an order, but I´m looking forward to it. Alois, bring me some beer"

"At this rate you are going to empty the whole barrel, Jeralt!"

"That would mean that tonight´s event was something to remember" he laughed. "I will tell you some of the stories of our past as we empty this barrel that Lady Rhea has graciously granted to us"

"If Seteth could hear you he would certainly disapprove that comment, but I will do it to remember the old times"

He spent some time with them, listening to the stories they had experienced when the travelled around the world as mercenaries. It was interesting to hear stories from a time he didn´t even exist.

"Is there a place where you have never been, Father?"

"The region of Morfis I guess. The people there are really strange. The Almyrans are a people that I can understand more and I have made some friends there after beating them up, but those of Morfis prefer to be isolated from the rest of the world"

"Even though you have experienced so many battles you have barely changed at all, Jeralt"

"That must be because I eat well, but I feel the pass of the time in my bones. In a few years I´m planning on retiring. It is better to retire as Jeralt the Blade Breaker than as Jeralt the rusted Blade. Do you have any plans for the future, son?"

"That is a good question, Jeralt. Will you stay here or return to your mercenary days?"

"I don´t know if I will permanently stay here, but for the time being I don´t mind continuing as a Professor"

"You really have changed" Jeralt said rubbing his hair. "I think I will return to my room. I will leave you with your dear students. Alois, come with me"

"Of course, Jeralt!"

Looking at them, he couldn´t avoid smiling. His father was a veteran warrior, but he was also a figure he could rely on and without him he was sure that all the battles he had to endure would have been harsher to handle.

"It is getting late, are you going to remain there, doing nothing? There are still some students. How about you dance again?"

"I´m ok with just watching"

"So boring, although there is someone that appears to be feeling the same" Looking a few meters from him he could see Rhea silently witnessing the final events of the Ball, although the moment she looked at her she started to take her leave.

"I wonder where she is going, how about we follow her? I´ve always felt curious about her"

Without a particular reason to oppose her he started to follow her from the distance, arriving to the upper levels of the main building. As he arrived to the upper levels a strange melody came to him, a melody that strangely felt nostalgic. He realized that Rhea was singing it, even though he had never heard her voice like that.

"This song… It feels so familiar. It makes me feel happy and sad and the same time…Wait a second, could it be that I was the one to make this song?" Sothis said as if she was lost in thought, wrapping her head. "But if I was the one to make this song, why she appears to know about it? If I am the so called Goddess why I am inside your body? These questions without a proper answer…made me feel exhausted…"

"I feel the same way" he said as he suddenly felt his body heavier. "What is this song? And why I´m feeling nostalgic about it too?" his thoughts were interrupted as he felt his body increasingly tired as he returned to his room, the events of the entire day appearing in his mind as he did so.


	47. The reason of tears

**12/26 Ethereal Moon**

"This place looks emptier than usual. I wonder if they are still hanging out or enjoying the aftermath of the night" Byleth thought as he was heading to the main hall when he was stopped by Alois, which had a worried expression on his face.

"Byleth, I was just searching for you! Have you seen Jeralt?"

"My father? No, the last time I´ve seen him was last night when he left accompanied by you. Has something happened?" It was unusual to see Alois so worried so he sensed that something important must have happened.

"Then I will have to count with just you. Some students were still missing since last night. At first I thought that it was just business as usual since it hasn´t been the first time that students "got lost" with all the celebrations, but a patrol spotted a group of students heading to the old chapel. Some of the soldiers tried to get in contact with the students when suddenly a monster appeared. We have to hurry up if we want to save them!"

"A monster appeared?" asked a familiar voice behind him. Jeralt was wearing his usual clothes, although the look of his face was serious.

"That is what I was told"

"How could a monster appear in the same area where the students were? There aren´t any reports of sights of monsters in the grounds of the monastery since two months ago. Could it be that the students and the monsters are…Now we don´t have time to waste in this chattering" he then looked at him. "Tell your students, we have to hurry up. With good mounts we will arrive in no time, but time is against us. Alois, go and inform Seteth and Rhea, we might need reinforcements. You know where we will be"

"No problem, Jeralt. Leave it to me"

"Understood father"

He rushed to the dormitories of the students, knocking the doors of all of them.

"Professor, what is going on?" asked a confused Caspar as he left his room.

"Monsters have appeared near the monastery. Some students appeared to be trapped with them. We have to hurry up and save them" he then looked to Edelgard, which has just left her room. "Make sure that everyone is prepared for the incoming battle. My father will provide the mounts. 5 minutes and we will leave"

"Understood. You have heard him. We have to hurry up!" Edelgard said looking to the rest of the students. Understanding that the situation was urgent they diligently appeared in the main entrance of the monastery with their battle equipment in no time.

"Sorry for ruining the aftermath, but I will pay to all of you a worthy meal after we save everyone. What a day to have a problem like this" his father sighed as he leaded him to the path to the old chapel. "Monsters appearing so close to the monastery? I don´t have a good feeling about this"

"How could they suddenly appear there? You were just patrolling the area a few days ago"

"It is certainly a fishy matter. Students going to an abandoned place without a proper reason, monsters appearing from nowhere. Coincidence? I don´t think so"

"If we don´t go faster they will get killed" He didn´t know the identity of the students in trouble, but he would do everything he could to avoid ending the day with a new tragedy. "This might be related to the events of the last months. They might have acted again"

"In that case we will stop them, let´s see if we get one of those bastards if we catch them" Jeralt said with a reassuring smile, although his expression darkened as he thought about something. "I´m sorry son"

"Sorry for what? You have done nothing to me"

"I´ve lied to you for a long time about you to protect you, but I think that you deserve a proper explanation. After we save the day come to my room to have a long talk and after that if you want to punch my face I won´t mind"

He wasn´t completely certain about he was talking about, although his evasive answers when he talked with him months ago came to his mind. "Even if you have lied to me I know that it was for a good purpose. We will talk later then, but instead of punching your face let´s share a cup of your favorite beer" he said smiling.

"That smile of yours, it is certainly a treasure" Jeralt laughed. "Thank you, we will talk after saving everyone" he said as he prepared his lance, the sight of the abandoned chapel already at sight.

"Battle formation! Check your surroundings. We don´t know their numbers"

"That doesn´t sound very encouraging, but I will do my part of the job" Linhardt said as he checked his surroundings, his white magic tomes already prepared.

They were already preparing their battle formation when they suddenly heard a roar coming from the small forest surrounding the chapel, a few moments later a gigantic beast appearing in front of them. The beast had on its face what it appeared to be a crest stone.

"The crest stone, it is somehow similar to the beast we killed in the ruins of Zanado, although the shape of the crest stone appears to be more regular as if a mold was employed to shape it" he thought as he looked at the monster.

"Some students appeared to have their paths blocked!" Jeralt shouted next to him. "Don´t let the beasts approach them. Catch their attention and kill them" he said as he threw a javelin to the beast which had just appeared in front of them.

"Edelgard, Ferdinand and Hubert to the left! Bernadetta, Dorothea, Caspar and Petra to the right! Linhardt and Flayn, stay in the middle and make sure to keep everyone save. The front is for me and my father!"

"Understood"

The beast was quickly approaching them, with its jaws wide opened, but it had two objectives and it missed the attack as it tried to hit them both. Changing to his main weapon, his father used his silver lance to pierce the beast´s hind legs as he used the Sword of the Creator to cut through the flesh of the chest.

The beast roared and tried to burn them with the flames it was pouring from its mouth, but their mounts were faster and they were able to avoid the retaliation. With a quick movement of his wrist he turned the Sword of the Creator into a whip piercing through one of the beast´s eyes, the beast roaring with a cry that it was almost human. Taking advantage from it his father used all the strength of his arm to make the lance he was holding pierce the throat of the beast in front of them. As he did so the beast stood up on its hind legs, but it couldn´t make any sounds before it collapsed to the ground. When they approached the corpse of the fallen beast it started to disintegrate leaving behind the corpse of one of the students in a deplorable state.

"What the hell? The students have turned into monsters. The crest stone they had on their faces must be related to this event…" his father´s words were interrupted when they heard the scream of one girl. "We have to hurry up, before they get killed by them!"

They quickly approach to the source of the scream. One of the demonic beasts had one of the students in its claws and was opening its jaws to devour her. They shouted to catch the attention of the beast, but it just ignored them as it closed its mouth, a stain of blood appearing around its jaws, the cries of the poor student suddenly stopped.

"Curse it! We were too far away!"

Using the powers of Sothis he turned back in time to the moment when the beast was starting to open the mouth. As it did so he used the Sword of the Creator as a whip biting the area of the stomach with it. The moment it felt the attack the beast focused on them as it released its grip from the student, who ran away to the place where Flayn and Linhardt were casting healing spells to keep the rest of the students save.

The beast was charging at them, the inner area of its throat a vivid red when a giant fire ball hit his mount from one of the sides, sending him to the ground as the horse he was riding panicked engulfed in fire.

"Careful son! There are two of them. I will take care of the one in front of me! Keep the attention of the other one"

The beast to his right was preparing another giant fireball, but this time was alerted and could avoid it. As he approached the beast avoiding its attacks he used the trees near the beast to climb the back of the monster. As he did so the demonic beast tried to get rid of him smashing the ground with its back, but he jumped to its face stabbing one of the beast´s eyes as retaliation. "I´m sorry, but I cannot allow you to cause any harm" he thought as he did the same to the other eye, leaving the beast greatly injured and blind. The beast tried to hit him with its claws, but his movements were clumsy and it couldn´t counterattack properly the attacks of his sword, the poor soul finally succumbing to its wounds.

….

"Come over here! Leave while we fight against the monster!" she shouted to the student who was about to get quarreled by one of the demonic beasts. When one of the spells from Hubert impacted on the beast´s flesh it lost the interest on its prey as it focused on its new adversaries.

"How beasts like this can appear so close to the monastery" Ferdinand said as he avoided one of the physical attacks aimed at him.

"We will have to find about it later, Ferdinand. For now we have to make sure that there aren´t any casualties among the students" she said as she released a potent blow to one of the beast´s limbs, cutting through armored skin, muscle and bone. With an unnatural roar the beast tried to set fire to the area surrounding it, but it was stopped by a potent spell from Hubert.

"That crest on its face…it is highly unnatural" she thought. The structure of the crest stone on the beast´s face was extremely symmetrical, but it appeared to have been built using different materials. "This must be the final objective of their investigations" she thought. "Monica must still be here in that case. I will make sure to end her miserable life here and now" she thought as she released a critical hit to the beast´s head, crushing it to the ground and stopping its moves. As the beast died it dissolved, the corpse of one of the students of the lower levels appearing instead.

"A student? How can something like this happen? This can´t be true" asked a shocked Ferdinand.

"This is not the moment to question the origin of these beasts, we have to make sure to save as many students as we can" Hubert said as he looked to one of the students that was running from a pair of beasts. As she looked to her surroundings she could see that Petra´s group was advancing in the opposite direction, although there were still many students that needed to be saved.

"With me!" she shouted as she approached the two new beasts.

….

"Are you ok Father?" he asked as he applied some healing magic in one of his arms.

"Don´t worry it´s just a scratch" he said as he picked his lance again. "We have been lucky, but there is still a pair of beasts over there, we have to make sure to get rid of them too" he said as he prepared to fight again. He had been forced to use most of his divine pulses to make sure that some of the defenseless students could survive before they could arrive, although the situation was getting better as the number of beasts started to reduce. His students were approaching them as they defeated the beasts on their way.

"How many monsters have we already got rid of? This is so troublesome. Be careful with the divine pulses that you still have. Remember that my power isn´t limitless"

"Don´t worry, I know it" he said as he released another hit to one of the beasts standing on its way. "Students turned into beasts" he thought as he continued fighting. It was obvious that the crest stones that he had seen on its faces had something to do with it. Could it be that the tragedy of Remire was the final stage to fulfill this situation? In that case he needed to make sure that they caught the responsible of it, alive. "I must know more about our enemy and their objectives"

"Careful son, this one is particularly big" Jeralt shouted as he avoided one attack of a beast remarkably bigger than its counterparts. Its skin appeared to be better armored than the monster they had fought so far, but they had to take it down if they wanted to save the remaining students. He was awaiting the incoming attack when a magical spell impacted into the beast´s face, spoiling its aim.

"Enough of this madness! Why something terrible like this has to happen?" Dorothea said, her face saddened as she charged another electric spell. "They are students, yet now they are beyond reasoning"

"Even it is a regretful event we have to push forward if we don´t want to worsen the bloodshed" Edelgard said as she attacked the lower half of the beast.

"Unforgivable. Those who had committed this atrocity deserve no mercy!" Ferdinand shouted as he charged toward one of the beast´s hind legs.

"Today´s menu won´t be students, only a bit more and everyone will be safe!" Casper shouted charging too.

With the support of his students they attacked the giant beast from different angles. Being overwhelmed by all their attacks the beast had no opportunity to counterattack and in a short while it was put out of its misery.

"You, over there, come here!" his father shouted waving his hand to the group of students they had just saved.

"Thanks for saving us!" said one of the students, his legs trembling out of control.

"What were you doing here? What had just happened here?"

"I can´t properly remember. All I can remember is that we entered the tower over there and then suddenly some of the students turned into…How could something like that happen? My friends…" said one of the students while crying.

"These students will need some help" Jeralt said with a worried expression on his face.

"Linhardt, Flayn, take care of them" Byleth ordered to his students. "The rest secure the perimeter, there aren´t any signs of beasts wandering around, but we have to be sure. I will go with my father to the old Chapel"

"Understood" his students said as they obeyed his orders, although Edelgard appeared to be more alert than the others.

"Keep your sword unsheathed. We don´t know if there is something lurking there" His father said as he got off his horse and carefully approached the abandoned tower.

There were signs of footprints that headed to the abandoned building, but none of them appeared to be from monsters. The gates of the building were wide opened so they didn´t have any problem to enter. The insides of the tower were completely silent, only the sound of their breaths could be heard.

"Look at the floor, son" Jeralt said examining the floor of the base of the tower. Some areas of it had been darkened as if a fire had been placed there. There were also strange symbols scattered around, one of which recalled his attention. "This eye… I´ve seen it before. This is of their doing, but for what purpose?" he thought as he looked to his surroundings, expecting to see the pale people appear around them, but nothing happened.

"This place appears to be completely empty, but that doesn´t mean that our enemies aren´t around. Signal this place to make sure that the forces of the Church know about our location. We will have to investigate everything that has happened here and interrogate the students to know what the hell is going on"

"Father, look at the marks of this are. I´ve seen these marks on the scythe that the Death Knight was wielding back in Remire. Hanneman has told me too that the scythe appeared to be produced by methods completely different to the ones we use to produce our current weapons"

"That means that the events that have happened are related to each other. If Solon is around here we have to make sure to trap him. Those bastards are definitely up to something. They are experimenting with us like we are just a bunch of defenseless animals" Jeralt said, his eyes filled with fury. "Let´s leave this place already. There aren´t any signs of students here"

….

"They must be near here, watching us" Edelgard thought as they walked around the area surrounding the old chapel.

"After all the fight this place has turned unnaturally silent. I don´t have a good feeling about this" Dorothea said as she worriedly looked to her surroundings. They have split their forces in two; Linhardt and Flayn were leading the students to safety and they were covered by Ferdinand, Caspar, Hubert and Bernadetta. The rest of their forces were with her, making sure that there weren´t any enemies around.

"I won´t let you be hunted, I will protect you with my life, Dorothea"

"Thank you Petra, but don´t sacrifice yourself, let´s survive, all of us"

"They must have created those crests" she thought, recalling the peculiar forms they had. "But doing this in a place so close to the monastery…I need to trap her before she worsens the situation"

They were walking next to a group of bushes when she heard a faint cry. Rushing to the area, she could find one of the students from the lower levels, which appeared to have been stabbed in the stomach.

"Dorothea, please apply some healing magic on her. She is injured" she said as she examined her looking for more possible wounds, but she found nothing. The face of the student was pale but she recovered some color as Dorothea started to apply her healing magic.

"What has happened to you? These wounds are too small for the beasts we had been fighting until now"

"I was stabbed. I was running away from the old Chapel when some of the students started to transform into monsters, I took a different path and hid myself into these bushes. I thought I was going to be ok, until I was attacked"

"Who is responsible of such attack?"

"By Monica, I thought we were friends, but she didn´t appear to be her usual self. She was mumbling something about how they dare to ruin her fun. I was so scared…I pretend to lose consciousness in the hope she would leave me alone and after a while she left"

"Monica? I know she was a bit strange, but I didn´t expect something like that to happen" Dorothea said with a worried look on her face. "Edie, where are you going?"

"Take care of her. I need to return to the old Chapel" she said running as fast she could. Knowing her it was clear that the aim of her anger would be Byleth, since he was the one responsible of interfering with the plans of their kin.

…..

"At least we could save all the students that didn´t transform. No sign of those that are responsible of all of this, though" his father sighed as he looked to the sky.

"Wait a second!" said the voice of a girl coming from one of the bushes.

"Monica, what are you doing here?" His student was nowhere to be seen when they rallied the students to aid those who were trapped by the monsters.

"I don´t know why I´m here, but when I came to my senses some of the students turned into horrifying beasts" she said sobbing. "I was so scared"

"Don´t worry little girl" Jeralt said rubbing her hair.

"Byleth! Stop her before…" Edelgard was shouting as she approached them, but he couldn´t hear what she was saying as he watched horrified what had just happened. His father was on his knees, blood pouring from his mouth, stabbed from behind by Monica.

"You are such a nuisance. How you dare to spoil my little experiment here. You should know your place old man. The fact that you are dying of such a little wound means that you are monster too" she cruelly giggled as she looked at him. "I´m sorry Professor, but it seems that I have just killed your father. My hand moved on its own, I promise"

"No, this can´t be happening" he thought as he used the power of his divine pulse to turn back in time.

As Jeralt was patting Monica´s head he unsheathed the Sword of the Creator and released all its power as a whip, aiming to Monica´s head. The Sword was just about to hit her when a shield of magic appeared in front of him, repelling the attack. The author of the spell was a man wearing a black armor which contrasted with his pale skin and eyes, a pair of eyes that could only be considered unnatural.

"Thales, what are you doing here?"

"I would be a fool if I let the secrets of our kin to be revealed to our enemy. Your purpose is yet to be done" he said as he warped them away.

"NO,NO,NO! It can´t end like this!" he panicked as he approached his father. "I need to turn back in time again".

"You can´t do it, Byleth. There is a limit to this power, if you do it…" but he couldn´t hear Sothis´s voice. His father, the person who had been his guide and pillar during his entire life was lying on the ground and he couldn´t do anything about it. "Even in that case, even if I have to pay for it, I need to, I need to do it!" he said as he forced the divine pulses to work again.

"NO!" Sothis cried, but there was no turning back. Feeling an increasing pressure on his chest he returned back to the moment when Monica appeared in front of them, pure ire clouding his mind. Charging all his vital energy into the sword he released an inhumane attack against her, although the mysterious man appeared in front of him again, casting his magic shield.

"I won´t let you get through this!" he shouted, giving even more energy to the Sword which shined as if the sun had descended upon them, the veins of his arms releasing a potent light as well.

"This power…ours will be the final victory fell star, doom of mankind. Kronya with me! There is no time left!" The mysterious man said, his expression full of hatred, but his magic shield was no obstacle to his fury. The sword torn through metal, flesh and bone as if it was butter, impaling the creature in front of him as a black mist covered them. As it disappeared only blood could be seen dropping from his sword, his weapon so incandescent that was painful to watch.

"Curse it, they escaped, but at least I got that one" he thought. Most part of his power has stroke down his foe as the lightning, even if he had survived the initial blow he was sure that he will die of his injuries.

"My son…" The weak song of his father damaged him more than the sharpest of blades.

"Father!" he said embracing him as he touched the area of the wound. Smoke was leaving the affected area and the blood had turned into pure black.

"I don´t think I will get through this"

"Don´t speak nonsense father. You will survive, I promise you!" using what he remained of his strength he channeled his vital energy into his father, even though the pain he was feeling inside his heart was achieving unbearable levels, but he was stopped by the gentle hands of his father.

"Byleth. I don´t want to die, but I couldn´t live in a world where you had to die in order to prolong my own life. It´s not worth it"

"But father, what will I do in this world without you? I will be clueless about what to do from now on. Please, don´t leave me!" the emotions he was experiencing were overthrowing him, the pain of his heart extending to his entire body.

"You are wrong about it son. I won´t be leaving you. I will be just here" he said touching the area of his heart.

"I wanted you to retire and spend the rest of your life enjoying the little things of life" he said as tears started to appear around his eyes.

"Tears" his father almost whispered. "The first time you cry and it is for me. I´m happy and sad at the same time. How strange. Take care of your kiddos; protect them as I did to you"

"Father, I will always love you"

His father said nothing but by the way he was smiling he knew that he had heard him as light finally left his eyes.

"I failed, even the use of all my power was useless against them…I´m clueless about what to do" he said as tears kept leaving his eyes. As he did so the first drops of rain started to fall as if the weather was sharing the same pain he was experiencing. The physical pain he was enduring was achieving inhumane levels as if his heart was pierced by several swords at the same time, although he felt a strange presence next to him.

…..

"Those disgusting creatures ran away again" she thought as the dark mist of their warping spell disappeared. "I should have been here earlier, I failed at stopping her" she thought as she rushed to Byleth´s place.

"My Teac…." her voice suddenly grew silent as she saw the extension of the tragedy that had happened. Jeralt´s light had already abandoned his eyes, a small pool of blackened blood extending around his body, but what really shocked her was Byleth. She had never seen him crying yet seeing him like that made her realize how damaged he was by the events that had just happened.

"I failed, even the use of all my power was useless against them…I´m clueless about what to do" he said, his eyes observing the body of his father.

"Byleth, I´m sorry I wasn´t able to come earlier. I wished I could, but…"

"This pain, I´ve never felt something like this. Is this the price to be normal? Why I heard nothing but my own voice? I must have failed you too"

"What are you talking about?" she said worried as she gently placed a hand on his shoulder, the moment she saw his face those feelings turned into fear. The tears of Byleth had turned into blood; it was evident that he had sustained heavy injuries. "Byleth you need to have medical assistance as soon as possible. I don´t want you to die here!" she said as she tried to make him stand up again.

"I wished I could turn back in time once again, if I weren´t this weak…" he said coughing blood as she tried to make him keep walking.

"You aren´t weak, don´t blame yourself by the things that had just happened. I was the one that failed you, if I had arrived faster…" Byleth didn´t appear to be listening to him as if he was in a trance, but it was evident that he was greatly injured. "How much power has he used?" she was wondering as she suddenly heard a cry that made her blood freeze. As if he was pierced by an inhumane pain her Teacher cried touching the area of his heart as he collapsed to the ground.

"No! Stay with me!" she said in a panicked voice as she embraced his body. The rain that had just started a few minutes ago was menacing to turn into a storm, limiting her vision of the surroundings. "He needs help and now, if I knew healing spells…" Focusing her energy on her finger tips she aimed to the sky as she released a flame of a notable size to signal the place where they were in the hopes that someone could arrive.

"Lady Edelgard… I was….Is that the Professor?" Hubert said, freezing as he saw the unconscious Professor between her arms, luckily he was also accompanied by Linhardt and Flaynn.

"He needs help before it is too late"

"Leave it to us" Linhardt said as he placed his hands on his body as Flayn did the same, even Hubert which had a limited knowledge of healing magic did his best as he examined the Professor.

"We were searching for you" Alois said ridding a warhorse. "Byleth?! What had just happened?!" he shouted as he rushed to their position.

"Monica turned some of the students into beasts. The Professor tried to kill her, but he was stopped by another enemy as he tried to save Jeralt. He was able to injure one of them, but they escaped, but he was also injured and Jeralt…"

"No, that must be a joke. It can´t be real. How can Jeralt end his days like this…No, that is just absurd" Alois said in denial but looking at her he knew she was telling the truth. "We need to bring him back to the Monastery. Take my horse I will go to search Jeralt" he said as ran into the rain.

Placing Byleth´s body on the back of the horse Hubert lead the mount to the monastery as she made sure that Byleth didn´t fall. To their sides they were accompanied by Flayn and Linhardt, which continued to cast their healing magic, although by the look of their faces she knew that he needed a more powerful treatment.

"How did it end your little trip to the old Chapel? Wait… Is that the Professor? What happened?" Claude asked with a shocked expression on his face as she carried the unconscious Byleth to the infirmary.

"This is not the time to make questions, Claude. Please, tell everyone that can lend a hand to go to the infirmary"

"Understood" he said as he left the place running.

When they placed their body in the infirmary a group of people was already standing around him as the news of the events at the old Chapel extended through the monastery. Flayn, Linhardt and Manuela were applying their most potent healing spells as Manuela also applied potions of her own making on his body, her hands making sure that there weren´t any hidden injuries in his body.

"Leave way to Lady Rhea" Seteth announced as the group of people inside the room created an aisle before her. She worriedly rushed to Byleth´s position and placed a hand on his forehead, as she did so a green light extending through his body.

"He is exhausted, but I don´t fear for his life" she said after applying the spell during a minute. "Thank you for bringing him here" she said looking at them. "However, how something like this could happen?" she asked, looking at them.

As she explained the events that had happened at the old Chapel her face grew darker and sadder when she heard about the death of Jeralt.

"My dear friend. I never thought that a day like that could happen so soon. My heartfelt thanks for bringing him here, but he needs to rest now" she then looked at Manuela. "Dear Manuela, when they bring Jeralt, tell me. This day of sorrow won´t be easily forgotten"

"Understood" she said nodding at her.

As she left the room behind her she couldn´t stop thinking about the events that had just happened. "I´ve proven to be useless regarding the control of their kin. I won´t forget the unforgivable crime they had just committed here" she thought as ire extended through her body.

"Edelgard" interrupted her thoughts Dimitri´s voice. "What had happened? The monastery is filled with rumors about the events that had happened at the old Chapel? Is it true that Jeralt has died?" Dimitri asked, accompanied by Claude.

"It is, he was killed by Monica"

"Monica? Isn´t she the girl we saved from the Death Knight a few months ago? And now Teach´s father is dead because of her. We should have let her rot under the ground"

"The damage is already done. The only thing we can do is to reduce it to the minimum. Were the perpetrators of such an unforgivable crime killed?"

"Regrettably not"

"In that case that should be the first thing we should be doing. Retribution for the crimes they have committed against the ones we hold dear. First Remire and then this. Such irrational beings deserve no compassion" Dimitri said, his blue eyes darkened by shadows.

"We have to keep an eye on the Flame Emperor too. We don´t know when they could strike again"

She simply nodded to what they were saying, her only hope was that the suffering of her Teacher wasn´t in vain.

….

"This injury. The energy emanating from it isn´t from this world"

"This is not the time to investigate about it, you have to help me, Solon" he said as he felt as the pain of his injury was extending through all his body. Using his powerful magic he had warped to a save place and from there Solon had brought him back to their base.

"No matter the healing magic that I cast into the wound, it reopens again" Solon said as he casted another potent spell, closing the wound, but as soon as he stopped casting the healing magic the wound reopened again as if nothing had happened. "We will need to use our entire technology to make sure that you survive, Master Thales. Was it wise to make such a move? A few more centimeters and you won´t be here anymore. This injury is truly evil; it appears to have a conscience of its own"

"The other option was to let them know the inner secrets of our body. That would have been a worse outcome. The moment they would open her body they would have realized the menace we are against their rule. I was a fool to entrust her with such responsibility. I didn´t expect her to overcommit like that"

"Kronya has always been a loose end and her attack against Jeralt and the Fell star was highly unexpected, but we can take some profit from the current turbulent times. One of the most powerful warriors of our enemy is no more. If we are able to get rid of the Fell star then the balance of power will be on our side. And I have the feeling that Kronya will come handy when that time comes"

"I hope so, but for now I will need time to recover from my wounds. How much time do I need to stay like this?" he asked as he entered the capsule that was prepared for him.

"Using ordinary methods I am afraid that will take years to recover from such damage"

"Years? I can´t afford to lose so much time, even if my life is at risk. Mutations are already happening within the host body. In no time he will lose his sanity or worse, the Fell Star will take hold of his body" he said, although the pain he was feeling twisted his face as he did so.

"Using all the power of our technology and base we can considerable reduce the period of time needed for your recovery, but you will need to cease your interventions for several weeks at least and you won´t be able to use the full strength of your powers until we get rid of the poison biting your flesh"

"Understood, I´m on your hands…for now" he said as the chamber prepared for him closed, exhaustion finally taking control of his whole body.

"Don´t worry Master Thales, I will make sure that your strength is fully recovered when it is required, until then leave the revenge against the fell star to me" Solon said, looking at him with a sinister smile.

"Fell Star, this won´t be the last time that our paths cross. I promise you that I will land the killing blow on your kin. Your rule must come to an end. For all the unnecessary suffering that you have caused to this world, for your self-righteous hypocrisy that made this world bleed" he thought as tiredness covered him.

….

"What has happened to the world?" he thought as he walked through a land scorched by flames. The land around him was completely destroyed and he could only see in the distance explosions of an intense light.

"My head, it hurts" he thought as he witnessed the unnatural environment around him. As he did so the land started to tremble as if the land itself was starting to move on its own. As it started to move he could see a dark wall approaching him. When he realized that it was a wall of water of a colossal size it was too late as he was drawn away by it, only desperation left in his heart as he was drag away by the dark waters, the explosions of light from the distant lands the only thing he could see from the darkness of the waters that were trapping him.

"You are weak"

"What?" he weakly asked as he opened his eyes again, the apocalyptic surroundings nowhere to be seen.

"You are weak"

Looking at the source of the voice his eyes stopped at the stone throne he had got used to see, but Sothis wasn´t there. Instead of her an old man was sitting on the stone throne, his amber eyes looking at him genuinely interested.

"I´ve waited a long time to talk with you"

"You can´t be real, you died one thousand years ago"

"If I´m not real why are we talking, unless you are telling me that you are mad" Nemesis laughed as he approached him. "If I´m here there must be a purpose behind it, don´t you think?"

He was certain that he wasn´t real, but even now he could feel an unbearable pain inside him. "Could it be that in just mad?" he wondered as he looked to the man standing in front of him.

"What do you want?"

"As I was saying you are too weak, you aren´t using your strength to its full length"

"I did everything I could to save them"

"Everything you could do wasn´t enough, if you were powerful enough you could have been able to save everyone. You have the tools and qualities to achieve those things yet you are too scared to use your inner strength to its fullest"

"My father…"

"He is dead because you couldn´t save him and there is no turning around it, but I can offer you something different"

"What do you mean?"

"Retribution" Nemesis said with a sinister smile. "Accept your strength and avenge your father, a warrior´s honor is to avenge those who die to his side, unless you are a coward"

"I´m not a coward" he said, feeling an inch of ire as he looked at him. "But they ran away. They escaped and I don´t know where they are"

"They couldn´t have run away too far from the place where you faced them. They must be still around here, lurking in the shadows"

"Shadows..." he thought. During all these months strange events had happened within the grounds of the monastery. Shadows lurking in the depths, waiting for a chance to strike again…

"You seen to get it, this monastery is filled with rats, rats that deserve to be eradicated. However, in order to achieve that you need to use your powers to its maximum strength"

"I don´t trust you, I don´t even know if you are real" he said with a defiant look, although the pain he was feeling partially twisted his face.

"Illusion or not I´m just giving you council" he laughed. "Are you going to be indulging yourself by self pity until they kill someone else? If you are truly a warrior, be truth to your oaths, after all no one can return from the dead" he said as he walked away from him, mist starting to appear. He tried to catch him, but the pain he was feeling made him open his eyes.

"Where am I?" he thought as he looked at his surroundings, the place completely dark. As he got up his vision darkened but he continued, nevertheless. As he got used to the dark around him he realized he had been carried to the infirmary. Looking through the window he saw that most of the monastery was already surrounded by shadows, the light sound of the rain the only thing he could clearly hear.

A faint light caught his attention. As he approached the source of that light he realized it was the Sword of the Creator. "Even with the power of the sword I miserably failed" he lamented. As he recalled the events of that day the bells of the cathedral started to ring. Alerted by the song he thought they were under attack until he realized that they were playing a solemn hymn.

"The bells are ringing for my father" he realized as the sound pierced through his head, sending echoes through his body as physical pain and sorrow turned into one within his body. The rain and the bells made it look like the world was also crying for his death, but no matter how much he cried he knew that he was gone to a place where he couldn´t reach for him.

"I was so weak, but I won´t fail again, I promise" he said as he picked the Sword of the Creator once again. The sword reacted to the contact of his hand releasing small sparks from its body. Closing his eyes he retook part of the energy he had channeled into the sword and as he did so the pain was numbed, but not eradicated. "They must be still around here, lurking in the shadows. I won´t back down" he promised as he climbed to the window and jumped to the dark under him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In memory of Manchita. 15 years of undeserved loyalty.


	48. Descend into the Abyss

**12/26 Ethereal Moon (night)**

"They escaped" she thought as she walked in her own room, the rain hitting the windows and walls of the monastery.

"The loss of one of the strongest knights of Seiros is surely a devastating event for the Church. They have exposed themselves, from now on the archbishop will be more cautious with her surroundings. I wonder what they were thinking when they did such a move" Hubert wondered with an analytical look.

"I don´t think that Jeralt´s death was a premeditate attempt, but an unreasonable action from Monica" She was certain that the fact that their leader had appeared in front of them, risking his own life in the process, was a clear example that Monica´s actions were out of control the moment she decided to confront her Professor and his father. Recalling those events, she couldn´t avoid feeling remorse. "I should have done something to avoid this outcome"

"And risking your life in the process? Well meant actions would bring nothing but suspicions, Lady Edelgard. Being cautious isn´t something to feel sorry about"

"What is the purpose of the power I have if I´m unable to use it? I´ve told more than once, if we rely too much on them, we will find our demise, but there is no point in talking about ifs, the damage is already done. Even if your knowledge of healing magic is limited what did you feel when you assisted the Professor?"

"I felt an intense energy coming from his body, but looking at him he appeared to be in an extremely weakened state. I must admit that such level of energy could be considered inhuman. We should be prepared for the worst, Lady Edelgard"

"Nonsense. You know him, even with such an imbalance of power I´m confident he will overcome his injuries" "That energy must have been the true power of his crests released. The Crest of Flames. Is that the price of using such power? In that case could happen the same outcome to me too?" she wondered as she looked at her own hand. Even if both of them were the only known beings to be wielders of the Crest of Flames she had the feeling that her Professor had to endure a different path to obtain such power. "The fact that he can use a crestless weapon is a reminder that the power within him is far superior to the rest of crest wielders"

"I´m confident about it too. However, these events have brought an interesting outcome that could affect our own plans. Lord Arundel…I mean Thales appeared to have been in the receiving end of the Sword of the Creator. If we are lucky enough, we could be free of one of the biggest obstacles to recover control of the Empire"

"I wouldn´t hold my breath about it. They are known for their unnatural abilities. But even in that case I don´t think that we will hear from him for a while. In that case we have to take advantage of the situation. Hubert, return to the Empire to prepare the final steps of the imperial succession"

"I will certainly do so, Lady Edelgard" he said bowing to her. "This is certainly a great opportunity to make sure that there aren´t major obstacles against us. Lord Arundel had sent spies to investigate my whereabouts, but it is a pity that I found them first" he said with a sinister smile. "I highly doubt that they are stupid enough to make another move, but I beg you to avoid risky situations"

"Don´t worry, Hubert. I will remain with my eyes wide open. We will meet next month then"

As he left, she couldn´t avoid sighing. The loss of Jeralt was highly unexpected, but the worst part was to see Byleth in such a deplorable state. "Even someone like him is able to shed tears. He must have really loved him" she said as she thought about her dear ones. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard someone knocking at the door. As she opened it, she was surprised to see both Claude and Dimitri waiting in front of her room.

"Edelgard, do you have some time to talk?" Claude said in an unusual serious tone.

"I don´t mind, come in" They entered the room, Dimitri accepted the chair she was offering to him as Claude took a place next to the window of her room.

"I guess that this day has been a tough one" Claude sighed as he looked through the window, the sound of the bells reverberating in the distance. "To be fair I didn´t expect something like this to happen. How could we be so blind?"

"Only a coward attacks hiding its identity. The Flame Emperor and the rest of them have been moving in the shadows all this time. It is time to bring them to the light of justice" Dimitri said as he looked to his hands.

"The forces of the Church will be certainly alert from now on. Forces had already been sent to the surroundings of the monastery. I highly doubt that they are any of them here anymore"

"In that case we have to chase them down. For the Professor" Dimitri said looking at her. She hadn´t seen that look on his face before.

"The question isn´t if we have to chase them down or not, but where they are hiding, Dimitri. We need first to know their location, but for now there isn´t too much we can do. Furthermore, I think we should focus on the wellbeing of the Professor before we prepare any plans to counterattack" She had already heard that the Church was preparing a massive operation for the following month, but she suspected that it would bring more harm than good.

"Edelgard is right about that, Dimitri. We should check the Professor to make sure that he is getting better. Transforming students into beasts, how strange. What is the purpose of this group? There are too many unanswered questions, but for now the only thing we can do is to make sure that the Professor is fine. How about we go to visit him?"

"I thought that the access to the infirmary was restricted until new order from the archbishop"

"Well technically it is, but I came across with one of the keys of the infirmary and there isn´t always a guard on the gate so…" Claude said with a mischievous smile.

"That isn´t unexpected coming from you, but I must thank you this time" she smiled

"Thank you, Claude, although you shouldn´t be stealing things"

"I didn´t steal it, I just picked it. Let´s go"

Most of the church forces had been sent to the area surrounding the old Chapel so they found no one on their way to the infirmary.

"I guess that they took a moment to rest" Claude said as they arrived in front of the door of the infirmary, no one to be seen. Only the sound of the rain could be heard as they approached the infirmary. Rhea has been insisting on isolating the Professor for the time being, although she doubted the punishment would be hard on them if they got caught.

"Wait…The Professor isn´t here"

"What do you mean, Claude?" she said alerted as she entered the room as well, but Claude wasn´t wrong. The room appeared to be empty, although there weren´t any signs of violence.

"Do you think he was taken away by those who have committed all these atrocities?" Dimitri asked, picking a short sword.

"Highly doubtful. There aren´t any signs of violence. And even if they were able to enter the room, the grounds of the monastery are heavily watched now"

"Then what? Do you think he flew away?" Claude asked.

She was about to answer when she realized that one of the windows was opened.

"You may be right about it, Claude. He must have escaped from this room through the window"

"Really? But how? It doesn´t make any sense"

"He must have used the Sword of the Creator" she said as she realized the sword was nowhere to be seen.

"The Sword of the Creator…such a strange yet powerful weapon" Claude said in an unusual analytical look. "Anyway, we have to search for him. Why the hell would he leave in his condition?"

"For retribution against those who caused so much pain. I can´t really blame him, I´m aware of those feelings quite well" Dimitri said lost in thought as if he was thinking about something else. "I will help both of you"

"Let´s go, there is no time left to waste. Bring your battle equipment. We don´t know if we will have to fight or not"

"Of course, imperial Princess. Don´t worry, I won´t let Teach get hurt. He still has so many interesting stories to tell us" Claude laughed as ran to his room.

…..

"I sense magic here" he thought as he applied a spell on one of the walls in the lower part of the monastery. As he did so, the wall gave way to a secret path, but looking to the marks on the ground it appeared to had been used recently, torches lit on his way to find them.

As he entered the passage, he felt that he was sinking himself into the depths of the monastery, the pain in his heart and head coming to him from time to time. When he was wondering if the path he was following would end he arrived to a large area.

"What do we have here?" said a voice from the shadows.

"It´s very easy to ask about the whereabouts of someone without revealing yourself. Show yourself and I will say to you who I am" he said, preparing his sword for battle.

"He got you there, Yuri"

"And you have already revealed my name to someone who we don´t even know. Would you be ok if I reveal your identity in front of someone like that, Balthus?" said a purple haired man a few meters from him. Next to him was an especially muscled man, which appeared to be missing a shirt.

"Haha. If they aren´t asking for money then I don´t have any problems. If he wants a fight, I will let my fists decide the outcome"

"You guys are always so troublesome; it almost makes me sigh" said a red-haired girl with red eyes.

"Don´t do that here Hapi! We don´t have enough space for what might happen" the man called Balthus said alarmed.

"Don´t worry, I´m more careful than you. You have done it again"

"Before you spoil my chance. Allow me to introduce myself, person from the surface. My name is Constance von Nuvelle and I will make sure to protect the inhabitants of the Abyss from evil-willed persons like you" said a blond-haired woman laughing, her exaggerated gestures reminding him of Ferdinand.

"The Abyss?" They didn´t appear to be extremely paled skinned and their way of speaking reminded him of the students he had been teaching. However, there was something strange to them.

"The people that has made his home under the very same monastery. If you don´t know about it how have you come to this place?" Constance asked, evidently shocked by his lack of knowledge.

"Enough of the small talk. It is obvious he is lying. He must be one of the masked people that had been entering the undergrounds of the monastery for months" Yuri interrupted her. "That sword must be a Hero´s relic. I don´t know how you got your hands on it, but it is clear that you are a menace. There is no time to waste" he said as he whistled. As he did so, the passage he had come through was closed by a wall and from the shadows started to appear countless bandits prepare for battle.

"You must be a foul or full of yourself if you think that you can come to this place and leave freely. We don´t allow people from the surface to roam here as they please"

"People from the surface?" he thought. They didn´t appear to be related to the likes of Monica and Solon, but he didn´t have another option but to fight. "If this is the only possible outcome, I have no other option, but to kill all of you" he said as one of the enemies was already charging at him. Already prepared for the charge he parried the attack and blessed his enemy with a quick death, cutting effortlessly through armor and bone. It didn´t matter that they had the numbers, they couldn´t compare to the power of a relic.

As he was preparing to finish off one of his enemies, he received the impact of a bolting spell. Surprised by the sudden hit he searched for the source of such spell.

"Surprised? You should check your surroundings if you mean to leave this place alive" Constance laughed as she prepared another potent spell.

Before he could do anything about it the guy called Balthus tried to hit him with his gantlets, he counterattacked with his sword, but he stopped his attack with his free gantlet. Looking at his weapon, he realized it was quite similar to other relics he had seen.

"Surprised? You can consider this one of the relics. I´m sure that it is the first time you have seen a weapon like this" he laughed before punching him in the stomach with his free hand. Coughing blood, he barely avoided one of the spells aimed at him.

"Did I punch you too hard? We are just getting started!"

Despite the enemies he had defeated he knew that there were too many of them.

"You are too weak" whispered a voice inside his head.

"No, I´m not weak and I won´t die here! I must keep fighting to avenge my father and protect all of them!" he said as fury extended through his body.

"Uh? What is he talking about?"

"Avenge his father? The bells that had been ringing in the surface, could it be that…" Yuri said, but his words were interrupted as he charged at the enemy lines.

….

"This place is so cold. Why do I have to be here?" Linhardt complained as they continued their path through the tunnel.

"I couldn´t think about a more suitable healer and you were still awaked" Edelgard said as she continued walking with a torch in her hand.

"How troublesome, I should have just taken the book and return to my room then"

"Claude when you said that you wanted me to accompany you to an interesting place, I was thinking about something completely different" Hilda sighed.

"I will repay you later, how about a cup of tea?"

"It is a promise then. Don´t even dare to forget it!" she smiled.

"Dimitri I will do my best too!"

"I´m counting on you, Ashe"

The combination of all the house leaders and some of the students from their respective classes was a really rare sight. The idea of bringing a smaller group had come from Claude, since if most of the students were to leave their rooms at night, they would attract the attention of the Church forces.

"This place is really filled with secret passages" she thought as they continued their path. They had discovered the secret passage by chance, as she felt a strange energy emanating from what appeared to be a mere wall. "This might be what Hubert feels when he senses magic. I should improve my magical abilities too since they proof to be useful"

"This passage appears to have no end. Are we really heading into the right direction?"

"Even in a situation like this you are complaining. I´m not sure if I should feel relieved or not by your lack of change under pressure, Linhardt"

"Quiet! Do you hear that?" Dimitri interrupted them, his body already adopting a battle position.

"Cries… There must be a fight down there" she said, preparing her axe. "I have the feeling that the Professor is down there, we have to go fast!" she said as she ran into the direction of what appeared to be a battle. As she descended, the tunnel they were crossing started to get wider until she arrived to a wide area. A few meters from her she could see a group of corpses, but luckily there was no sign of her Professor among them.

"What are these guys doing down here? I didn´t expect such numbers" Claude said with his bow already prepared looking for potential enemies in the shadows.

"They must be thieves" Dimitri said examining one of the bodies. "I don´t know what they are doing here, but if they are fighting against the Professor, we must defeat them. As he said so an explosion happened, a cloud of dust blocking their view of their surroundings. When the cloud disappeared, she could see him battling against a group of enemies through the destroyed wall.

"That is the Professor. We need to hurry up!" she said as she crossed through the new opening.

Most enemies were focused on Byleth, which appeared to have sustained various injuries as he kept fighting. Using her axe, she crushed one of the enemies from behind. Her surprise attack was quickly accompanied by the rest of the students.

"Reinforcements? What the hell?!"

Surprised from the sudden attack from behind them, the enemy lacked the necessary time to counterattack their arrival as they crushed through them.

"My Teacher! Are you ok?" she asked as she arrived to his side, repealing an attack aimed to her head.

"Edelgard? What are you doing here?"

"I was…we were worried about your wellbeing"

"We were searching for you, but you just disappeared, Teach. There is no need to go on your own"

"Claude and Edelgard are right, Professor. I understand the pain you have to endure and it will be an honor to help you, but to achieve it you have to find the place where they are hiding. These ones appeared to be simple thieves"

"So many young people down here. There are cute ladies too! Sorry if I punch you too hard!" a muscled man said as he approached Hilda.

"Be gentle with me, I´m a frail lady" Hilda said with a smile as she blocked the attack with a swift move of her axe.

"That voice… I have heard it in another place…Could it be?!"

"Why are so many people coming to a place like this? This is so troublesome" a red-haired girl said as she casted a spell against them.

"No matter the number of enemies we will crush them. If I want to recover my former position there is no other way around" a blond-haired girl said using a freezing spell.

"Wait, that tone and gestures… She must be a noble"

"It seems that we have new visitors, time for the plan B. Open the gates!" a purple haired man which appeared to be the leader of the thieves ordered.

As the leader ordered so she could hear a heavy sound as the gates to their sides opened a group of giant worms appearing from them.

Avoiding one of the thieves she charged against one of the giant worms which was about to attack Linhardt from behind. Using her axe and the power of her crests she crushed through the carapace of the beast with a brutal hit to the head.

"Retreat Linhardt, leave it to me!"

One of the other worms was preparing to attack, but was impaled by a whip-like attack.

"Thank you, my Teacher!" Looking at him, she could see how exhausted he was as he nodded to her.

"I didn´t expect such a welcome to a place like this. I´m sorry but we will be taking the victory today. How about you surrender?" Claude said with a teasing smile as he defeated another of the thieves. Even though their enemy had the number advantage at the beginning of the battle, their numbers were quickly reducing.

"There is no victory until I am defeated. Try me if you want to" the purple haired man said with a teasing smile.

"As you wish"

The arrow that Claude shot at him was extremely fast, but was effortlessly avoided by him.

"You are too slow" he said as he aimed at him with his fingertips. With a mere move of them the bow Claude was using was thrown away from him, leaving him defenseless.

"What?..."

The leader of the thieves was almost on him when he was stopped by Dimitri.

"Who are you? What are you doing in a place like this?"

"The same could be said about you" he smirked. "That face… you must be Dimitri, the leader of the Blue Lions"

"How could you know something like that?" asked a shocked Ashe.

"I have my contacts. Your face is familiar too"

As Dimitri was battling against the leader of the thieves and Byleth was fighting against the remaining beasts she advanced against the mages.

"These students from the monastery dare to come here. It is really troublesome"

"You don´t look too different from us, but if you dare to stand before me, I have no other option but to bring you down"

"That face…are you Princess Edelgard, the heir to the imperial throne?"

"I am. How about it?"

"Ugh, I wish I wasn´t here right now"

Avoiding her spell, she knocked her down with the base of her axe.

"I surrender! I beg for your mercy, Princess Edelgard"

"I hope that you have learnt your lesson"

"I surrender too. How troublesome. Hapi doesn´t like to fight"

As part of their leaders started to surrender some of them did the same, although those next to their leader continued fighting to death.

"You are beautiful and strong. I like women like that"

"Thanks for the compliment, but I don´t think that my brother Holst would like someone like you"

"Your brother Holst?! Oh my… I´m dead!" he said as he suddenly stopped fighting. "Please don´t tell your brother about this!" he said bowing before her.

"What the hell? Why did you stop fighting all in a sudden? I guess that the fight is over then"

The fight was almost over, but their leader appeared to refuse to surrender.

"You are fast" Dimitri said, catching his breath.

"I told you I won´t be easy on you. I might be the only one left, but I have to set a precedent to all of them"

He was about to attack Dimitri when he was disarmed by the whip-like form of the Sword of the Creator.

"Oh, I didn´t expect something like that, but you aren´t the only one to have little tricks like this" their leader smirked as he jumped on her Professor with a hidden dagger under his arm.

Jumping on him they rolled as they fought with each other. Claude was preparing to shoot, but he couldn´t as they were constantly moving. The fight ended a few seconds later as Byleth immobilized him with his body sitting on top of him.

"The battle is over. Stop this nonsense"

"If you didn´t want to fight why coming over here? I can´t trust your words"

"I was searching for the murderers of my father, a group of pale skinned people"

"You mean the masked people? I´ve heard that the leader of the Knights of Seiros had died"

"He was my father. He was killed by one of them"

"How about we start from the beginning? I´m sure we have plenty of time to discuss everything that had just happened" Claude said as he approached the rest of the surrendered bandits. "We aren´t here to fight against you. We were just trying to find the Professor"

"The Professor? Then it is true that all of you are students from the monastery. If you have time to spare follow me. There are many things that need to be answered right now" their leader said as he stood up again, helped by Byleth.

With nothing more to say they followed him and the rest to the lower levels of the monastery, the place known as the Abyss.


	49. What lies beneath

**12/26 Ethereal Moon (night)**

"First of all, I must apologize for what had just happened, I didn´t expect that a group of students and a Professor would come to a place like this" Yuri said as they followed him through the tunnels.

"The fault is all mine. I made the wrong assumptions"

The path they were following was leading them into the deepest parts under the monastery. Looking at the walls of the tunnel she could quickly realize that their surroundings must have been built hundreds of years ago.

"Could it be that we are approaching the origins of the monastery? In that case…"

"Hilda, I beg you that you can forgive me! If your brother realizes that we were fighting he is going to punch me to death!" her thoughts were interrupted by Balthus, which was almost yelling.

"That would be quite a lesson, don´t you think? I´m feeling nice today so I won´t tell anything, but you should be careful, especially when there are frail ladies involved. By the way, what are you doing here?"

"Well…I´m basically broke so I don´t have another place to go" Balthus said scratching his head. "If the nobles I owe money know that I´m here…"

"Money is the real force that moves our world, isn´t it" Claude said next to her. "However, I don´t really understand how a place like this could exist without the Church finding out about it"

"Claude is right. What is the purpose of this place? And why were you expecting an attack from the surface?"

"Abyss is a place where those who have lost everything can find some peace. We have old people, orphans and those who have ran away from their places of origin due to persecutions. The Church is tolerant about our existence and we are free to rule ourselves to an extent"

"You mean that they basically ignore us, Constance" Hapi said with an annoyed expression. "The Church does nothing about the situation in the Abyss. There are some rumors that the incursions from the surface have been committed by them, but I highly doubt that they are the real perpetrators"

"In that case who is to blame?"

"We don´t really know, but these last months had been quite troublesome. Soldiers had been entering and leaving the lower ground of the monastery and we have suffered some attacks too. Some have witnessed a person wielding a giant scythe in some of the passages, although there aren´t any reports of direct attacks" Yuri said, looking at them.

"A giant scythe? That must be the Death Knight" Dimitri said, clenching his fists. "In that case the Professor wasn´t completely wrong"

"They could be more than one group operating here, Dimitri, we shouldn´t deny all possibilities"

"I must admit that I didn´t expect students coming to this place, but from all of them the fact that the leaders of the different houses had come to pay us a visit is really interesting" Yuri laughed.

"You are really informed about everything that happens at the surface"

"It is my duty after all, Claude. The people living down there are my responsibility. We already know that you aren´t a menace to us, but those who had been attacking us from time to time could strike again at any time"

"In that case we´ll lend you strength" Dimitri nodded. "What do you think Professor?"

"I agree with you, Dimitri. We´ll help you investigate on this matter and I will hold all responsibilities of these events. I will talk with Rhea after all of this"

"Then I´m sure we won´t be expelled any time soon, Teach. Just try to smile when you apologize. I´m sure that the archbishop will be sympathetic enough with you. I bet my dinner on it"

"Even if he hasn´t spent much time with the archbishop he has already realized that she is strangely fond of him" she thought as she looked at him. "That smile truly hides a lot. I wonder how much he knows"

"Are you so confident that you will share the bread with us?" Balthus laughed.

"We are friends, right? The battle was just a little misunderstanding"

"Well, since you will be helping us, I don´t mind if we share some provisions, but be prepare to battle at any time. We don´t know when our enemy will appear, but we will have to be prepared even if they strike against us in the middle of the night"

"You don´t have to worry, we will defeat those enemies and if we can catch some of them alive, we may find out why they had been entering this place" she said. Apart from Balthus, the leaders of the Abyss appeared to be of their age, but the fact that all of them had taken refuge in the Abyss made her suspect of the reasons why they were hiding there. As she analyzed them with a look, the girl called Constance caught her attention. "Her accent is clearly from the Empire. I wonder why she is hiding here too" In the Empire wasn´t strange that minor noble houses appeared and disappeared from time to time, but she had the feeling that she wasn´t part of such houses.

….

"Well, welcome to our home, I guess" Yuri said as a small village appeared in front of them. Planks had been employed to create different paths, although it was clear that the quality of such elements was questionable.

"How many of you live here?" her Professor asked, looking at his surroundings.

"More than what you would expect" Yuri said as he whistled. As he did so, all kind of people, including children, started to appear from different tunnels and hidden rooms. For each man or woman capable of fighting there were two that were unable to do so.

"They are in a weak situation and they are even weaker after our fight" she thought

"Yuri! We were waiting for you! Who are these people?" asked one of the soldiers.

"Don´t worry, they have promised they will help us. I need some of you to take care of the fallen. Are the remaining forces in their positions?"

"They are as you have ordered us to do so"

"Very well" Yuri said as he looked to the rest of them. "We don´t know when the next attack is going to happen so we have to be careful. We have some rooms to spare for all of you, although I´m afraid that at least one of you will have to sleep in the rubble since one of our spared rooms is in a poor state"

"In that case I will take that room" Byleth said.

"I will accompany you in that case" It was evident that Byleth was exhausted and it was impossible that he had already recovered from his injuries so leaving him alone wasn´t an option.

"Oh, you really have quite a confidence, Edelgard" Claude laughed.

"Are you sure, Lady Edelgard? In my room there is plenty of space to spare and I would like to discuss a matter regarding my identity"

"Constance, since when our room has turned into your room? The mere thought that you have forgotten about me almost made me sigh"

"Don´t do it here, Hapi!" Balthus said in a worried tone. "Two per room will make the deal, seems ok to me. Hilda, you can use Yuri´s room until he returns. I want you tell me everything about my old friend. I wonder how he is doing now"

"You really admire him, don´t you?" Hilda laughed. "It almost feels as if we were kids again"

"In that case how about you spend the night with me, Dimitri?" Claude said with a teasing smile.

"You really are a troublesome man, Claude. I´m unable to be so easygoing like you. I wish I could be like you from time to time"

"Are you saying that you envy me? I feel honored" Claude laughed.

"I will be sleeping then" Linhardt yawned. "I hope that no one comes so I can rest at peace"

"I will go with you" Ashe said, following him.

"Remember that this isn´t a school trip" Yuri sighed. "Professor, I leave the security of this place to you until my return. Don´t betray my trust"

"I will do my best"

"In that case see you later. Be prepared to fight at any time"

As he said so, everyone headed to their assigned rooms. When Byleth opened the door before them, she realized why Yuri had said that their room was in a poor state. Debris was scattered across all of the room as well as broken furniture. The only elements that were sturdy enough were the walls, the floor and the ceiling.

"I guess that he didn´t exaggerate when he told us"

"Do you regret accompanying me?"

"Not at all, my Teacher. Even if the environment around is uncomfortable we must make the best of it" she gently smiled to him, although instead of his usual patting he simply nodded at her. The room was small, although there was enough space to sit in front of each other. She sat as he saw him putting the Sword of the Creator in one of the corners of the room, the faint gleaming of the sword allowing them to see each other faces.

"I used to sleep in rough terrain since I was young. My father once…" he suddenly stopped as he touched his head. "I´m sorry Edelgard"

"What are you sorry about?"

"I thought that I knew how much pain you had to endure, yet I was a fool. Now I realize how it feels to lose someone you hold dear. This pain is menacing to overcome me. He died…he died in my arms Edelgard and I was unable to save him and then when I thought I found them I fought against the wrong ones, taking part into a meaningless fight" Byleth said looking to one of the corners, tears unwillingly leaving his face.

His words and tears were more painful to watch that the events that had happened near the chapel. She didn´t want to see him like that, yet she didn´t know what to do.

"It is clear that you loved him. However, you can´t allow them to have the final victory. Losing someone is painful, but we have to continue our paths. I won´t cry with you since your pain is something that is deeply rooted inside you, but I can offer you one thing" she said as he looked at him in the eye, the eyes she had grown fond of. "When the time comes, I will be there for you. When you stand up once again, I will give everything I have to fight alongside you. I have the opinion that only going forward we can really honor those who have left us, otherwise their sacrifices would be in vain" she said as she offered her hand to him.

"Your words are harsh, but there is truth in what you say" he said as he cherished her hand with his own, making her heart tremble. "I´m responsible of all of you and I promised him I will take care of all of you from now on. Don´t worry, Edelgard, I will mourn his death, but I won´t be secluded in the past. I promise you that I will continue my path"

"I know that my words are cold, but these words were able to save me in my darkest times. I´m sorry this is the only thing I can do" She knew that she was considered cold by some people, but that was the way she was and she could do nothing to change the past that had turned herself into such person.

"I know that you have already suffered in the past, but I hope that the future is different. You are strong, Edelgard. You have proved it to me since the first time we met. I must say that I´m proud of you" he said, the ghost of a faint smile appearing on his face. "I hope that you can be happy once again"

"I will do my best" she said, although a shadow of doubt appeared inside her. She wondered how he will react if he knew she had been with those who had already committed such hateful crimes.

"Try to take some rest. We have to be prepared in case that they need our aid"

"The same could be said about you, my Teacher. The Abyss a place under the very same monastery, yet ignored by almost everyone. If this is such a secret place, how did people from the outside world find out about its existence? According to them only the Church knows about it"

"They might have an informant in the Church, but right know we can only speculate about it" he said as he used his cloak to cover part of his body.

A bit relieved after talking with him she closed her eyes, although the mysterious surrounding the place where they were staying were lingering in his mind.

….

"Ey, you two. Time to get up"

As she opened her eyes, she could see Yuri with a torch in his hand.

"A big group is coming; we have to make sure that they don´t arrive to this place. My scouts are leading them to a wider area to the west. If we don´t defeat them I don´t know what is going to happen to this village"

"Don´t worry, I will keep my word and I will fight alongside you" Byleth said as he stood up, offering his hand to her.

Outside their room the rest of the students were already awaked, although Linhardt was carried by Ashe, which was unsure about what to do with him.

"If their forces are superior to us, we will have to use the advantage of this terrain to its fullest" she said as she took her silver axe.

"I agree with Edelgard, this place is just asking for an ambush" Claude said with a mischievous smile. "If we can´t win by brute force let our little tricks overcome them"

"An ambush…It could work" Yuri said looking at them. "Follow me, there is no time to lose"

The tunnel they were following was incredibly narrow and multiple secondary tunnels departed from it, but Yuri appeared to know his way. It didn´t take them too much time until they appeared into a wider area, statues of the four saints of the Church in front of them.

"This place…I´ve seen it before" her Professor said as he prepared his weapon. Instead of the Sword of the Creator he unsheathed a silver sword.

"It is said that it was the first church to be built in this area. Above us is the current cathedral" Yuri explained. "Enough of the history talk. This will be the place where we will make our stand"

"There are many entrances to this place, they could appear from any of the tunnels. Put out the torches. We can take them down before they even realize where we are"

"Teach, that is a pretty good idea. You really think like a strategist and not like a typical knight"

"By the way you are saying it, it sounds like a critique against knighthood" Dimitri sighed. "I will listen to your command, Professor. My lance is ready"

"We will divide in three groups. Claude, Hilda and Balthus to the left. Dimitri, Ashe and Yuri to the right. I will cover this area with Edelgard and Constance. Linhardt and Hapi, stay in the middle so you can support the other areas in case of need"

"We have just met and you are already giving us orders" Balthus laughed. "Very well, Professor. I will make sure that they get a good beating"

"This will be the opportunity to show everyone my talent as a magician. This will be the founding stone that will mark my rebirth"

"Hapi doesn´t want to fight, but if I can stay in the middle then I´m good"

"I know we´ve had our differences, but this is the opportunity to show otherwise. I´m counting on all of you" Yuri said as he unsheathed his sword.

They didn´t have to wait too long as the first enemies started to appear. Without the light of the torches of the room they were easily spotted by them as they started to appear from the northeast.

"Dammit! Where are these filthy rats? We have lost them, we have to…" he couldn´t finish what he was saying as Byleth casted a fire spell that engulfed him in flames.

"Fire at will, now!"

Spells and arrows started to fly in the room as the enemy forces realized they were under attack; the light of the torches and the fire spells the only source of light.

She approached one of the enemies. As she grew closer to him, he tried to smash her head with the mace he was wielding, but his movements were sluggish and his armor couldn´t handle her counterattack. Next to her she could see her Professor, his sword stopping the attacks from two sword masters.

"Do you really think you will succeed? I will show you how wrong you are!" Constance shouted as a potent bolting spell left her hands wreaking havoc among the enemy lines.

"Enemies from other passage!" Claude shouted.

"I leave it to you, Claude, keep the pressure!"

"It has been a long time since I had a good fight, let me introduce myself!" Balthus shouted as he punched one of the soldiers to the ground.

"You are such a brute, Balthie" Hilda sighed as she defeated another enemy with her axe.

"Why are there so many of them here?" she wondered as she defeated another enemy. She doubted there were just trying to kill the inhabitants of the Abyss. "If we want to know what is going on, we have to capture some of them" As she asked herself those questions more enemies started to appear from one of the other passages.

"More enemies? You must be kidding, I don´t have enough healing magic to take care of all of you" Hapi said, her and Linhardt covered in a green cloud of healing magic.

"So troublesome and so tiring"

"Edelgard, behind you!" Byleth shouted as he stopped a magic attack aimed at her.

"Thank you, allow me to reciprocate" she smiled as she defeated another enemy. Fighting back to back they repelled the attacks aimed at them as their shadows were casted against the walls by the magic explosions and fires surrounding them.

"There are too many of them" Byleth muttered as he stopped another attack. All the students were fighting against the intruders, but their side was the one where most of the enemy forces were arriving.

"Edelgard, throw me with your axe to one of the statues"

"Understood" using her strength she sent him flying. As she did so she could see how he was charging magic in his hands.

"Constance, retire from that place!" she shouted as a giant explosion happened, a few seconds latter the base of the statue of one of the four saints started to crumble, crushing a large number of their enemies under it.

"Wow Teach, that was impressive. That must be what we consider a divine punishment. Not so sure the poor saint would be pleased, though" Claude laughed as he prepared his bow to attack.

"That was quite a show of magic, I must admit that I am impressed by it" said a surprised Constance witnessing the destruction in front of her.

"He is quite a force to reckon. You must be from the Empire"

"I am. My name is Constance von Nuvelle and I will show to you that the legacy of my house has been left intact" she said as she released another potent spell from her hands.

"House Nuvelle" she thought. House Nuvelle had an important position within the Empire, but the events of the Dagda-Brigid war had caused an irreparable damage to the noble House.

"We will talk later, for now we have to keep fighting"

"Of course, Lady Edelgard" she quickly bowed before she continued to fight.

…..

"This was unexpected. Nobody told us we´ll meet with such an opposition down here. We had been deceived!" cried one of the soldiers.

"How ironic that you are the one crying when you were planning to slaughter innocent civilians" Yuri scorned him. "I must admit that I´m surprised to have faced such number of enemies. Why using such brute force to destroy the Abyss?"

"This place is home to those who had lost everything, it wouldn´t be strange if someone knew about this location and tried to finish what they started"

"You may be right, Hapi. In that case, why have you come to this place? Who gave the order to assault?"

"We didn´t plan to attack a village. We only needed to find a treasure"

"A treasure?" she wondered looking at them. "What kind of treasure could be hidden here? Could it be a relic?"

"Are you telling me that you were searching for something like that in a place like this? This place has nothing to offer the likes of you. Who gave the order?"

"I don´t know…"

"You must be kidding; how can a bunch of mercenaries enter this place without knowing the person that is employing them. That´s nonsense. Balthus, persuade him"

"Stop! I´m telling the truth. Please don´t kill me!" the mercenary cried after being punched by Balthus a couple of times.

"Yuri, they may be telling the truth. This one is about to piss his pants"

"Even in that case we can´t let them roam around this place as they please. We will have to imprison…" Suddenly one of the mercenaries ran to Yuri´s position with a hidden dagger.

"Go to hell, bastard!"

The dagger was about to hit him when a magic explosion engulfed the soldier in green flames, reducing him to ashes.

"Are you ok, Yuri?" asked a medium aged man, wearing cardinal´s clothes.

"I didn´t expect you here, but thanks"

"Long time no see you! Have you come to check on us again? We are already grownups, but I appreciate the visit" Balthus laughed.

The cardinal was about to speak when his eyes suddenly froze on her Professor.

"Thanks Goodness you are here. I had the feeling you were here the moment we were alerted from your disappearance"

"I didn´t expect to see you here, Aelfric"

"Wait, do you know him? This is quite strange"

"Our paths have crossed a couple of times, that´s all. My heartfelt condolences to you, Byleth. The events of this terrific day shall never be forgotten. I will do all I can to advert such situation"

"How can he advert something like that?" she wondered as she analyzed the person in front of them. The man called Aelfric was clearly a high ranked member of the Church, but the fact that he was completely alone made her suspect that he had come on his own.

"I am sure that you will have many questions, but this is not the place to discuss such serious matters"

"Aelfric is right, let´s return. There is no point staying here anymore"

…..

"I see, so you are in charge of the Abyss" he asked as they approached the village.

"I am responsible of the wellbeing of the inhabitants of the Abyss, but as my responsibilities multiplied, I have relied more on the four of them. The Church acknowledges it and hasn´t opposed my help here for years"

"To be fair more than acknowledging the Church simply ignores us" Hapi added.

"I must admit that the Church isn´t perfect, but I can´t really blame it. I am pleased to see that the village had been left intact despite all the strange events surrounding the monastery"

"Those who dare to enter this place are just asking to get a good beating. However, I don´t get why the mercenaries were trying to enter this place. They were talking about a treasure"

"I am not completely certain about this, but they could be referring to the Chalice of Beginnings"

"A Chalice? Such efforts just to drink some win?" Claude said.

"This story is one that has been restricted to those with a high position within the Church. According to the legend, Saint Seiros and her four disciples created the Chalice to bring the dead to live again. It is an artifact with the blessing of the Goddess herself"

"Bringing someone back to live" she thought. She doubted that something like that could be possible, although she understood how the possibility of doing something like that could be tempting enough. "Her disciples? Do you mean the four saints?" Edelgard asked.

"Her disciples are named the four apostles. They were followers of Seiros and achieved great things during their lifetimes. Unfortunately, their legacy had been lost and we don´t know much about them. However, it is clear that they are different to the four saints"

"That sounds almost like a fairytale" Claude said.

"Even if the Chalice is incapable of bringing back the dead, there is no doubt that it is a powerful device. It would be unwise to leave it unprotected. The scarce information about it says that the Chalice is protected by the Chasm of Bound, although the location of such a place is unknown"

"Well, at least we can suspect that is hidden within the Abyss. In that case we should make sure that they don´t find them"

"Yuri, I understand that you want to protect the inhabitants of the Abyss, but going on your own would be too risky"

"Don´t worry, I will accompany him to make sure that he stays out of danger" Byleth nodded next to her.

"Your words are really trustworthy, but I beg you to have some rest in case that you plan to explore the inner areas of the Abyss. We don´t know what could be hiding in the shadows" he smiled to him. "Since you are here, I have a request for you. Could you be the Professor of all of them? They can be troublesome from time to time, but I am confident they could learn a lot from you"

"Wait, this guy, our Professor? He looks even younger than me" said a surprised Balthus.

"He had shown to be a capable fighter. Even if his technique doesn´t fit my style I´m not completely opposed to learning from him"

"I´m with Constance. Even if you work for the Church you don´t look evil. Hapi wouldn´t mind having a Professor like you"

Yuri sighed, before looking at Byleth.

"Are you ok with something like that?"

"I don´t mind" he nodded.

"In that case I leave them to you. I´m afraid that I must return to the surface for a short while. The Church forces are already searching for you, but if we can end all of this quickly, we will solve this matter before the situation gets worse. Take some rest. In a few hours dawn will come and it will be easier to explore in case you do so"

"Good job everyone. Let´s take a rest before we continue our exploration" Byleth said in a neutral tone. "And thank you, I really appreciate that you were worried about me. I won´t forget it" as he said so a small smile formed on his face, which relieved her more than their victory.

"Don´t worry Teach. That´s why we are here"

"Claude is right. This is our opportunity to reciprocate everything you have done to us" Dimitri smiled.

"My Teacher, I will keep true to my words" she said as he looked at her.

"Less talking and more resting. More than a group of students and a professor you look like a bunch of friends" Yuri sighed.

"Anyway, take some rest before we continue" Byleth said as he headed to their temporal room, marking the end of a day filled with unusual events.


	50. The mystery of the Chalice

**12/27 Ethereal Moon**

There wasn´t too much difference between day and night in the Abyss, the torches the only source of light. As she followed the leaders of the Abyss, she couldn´t avoid thinking about the strange tale she had heard last night. "A chalice capable of bringing back the dead? How can something like that exist in this world?" If something so powerful could exist it was obvious that there would be more records about it, yet apart from that strange tale everything remained in the shadows. "How did he know about it?" If a cardinal knew about that tale, the archbishop must know about it too.

"What are you thinking about, Edelgard?" Byleth asked her as they continued walking. All of them appeared to be tired, yet she was a bit relieved to see her Professor with a neutral expression again.

"I was just thinking about how many mysteries are still unfolded within this monastery"

"We have the same opinion on this matter, Edelgard. When I first arrived to the monastery, I already knew that it was bigger than it appears to be, but I didn´t expect something like this" Claude said as he observed his surroundings.

"There aren´t any recordings of the initial stages of the monastery. The only thing clear is that it was specifically chosen to worship the Goddess. However, Enbarr also has important bonds with the origins of the teachings of the Goddess, yet this place was chosen, in the middle of nowhere" Linhardt said with a pensive glare.

"Well, not exactly in the middle of nowhere. The ruins of Zanado are close enough. I didn´t have the honor to accompany all of you, but I´ve heard that it isn´t a conventional place. Am I wrong?" Claude said, joining the conversation.

"You aren´t. That place must be the silent witness of an ancient civilization, but the design of the ruins is completely different to this place. The monastery must have been a later developed building, although its origins remain in the shadows"

"Are you sure we are heading in the correct direction, Constance?" she asked

"Don´t worry, Lady Edelgard. I am completely sure that this path will guide us to our objective. If you take a closer look to the walls of this area, they appear to be older. Without a doubt we are entering the oldest part of these tunnels"

"They look the same to me, though" Balthus yawned.

"That´s because you aren´t paying attention at all. I feel a subtle energy ahead of us"

She could feel it too, although she could just feel a faint energy coming from the shadows. When she was already wondering that the path they were following didn´t have an ending they suddenly arrived to a dead end.

"I guess that this is the end of our little expedition"

"You are wrong, this is exactly the place we were trying to find. I can feel a strange energy coming from the other side" Constance said as she touched the wall. As she did so, strange glyphs appeared on the wall. In the center of the wall a chalice appeared, the glyphs slowly moving around it"

"These are magic runes" Linhardt said, taking a closer look. "The path is blocked unless we can deactivate them"

"Let me do my little trick of magic" Balthus laughed as he approached the wall. "Take this!" he shouted as he brutally punched the wall with his relic, although the wall appeared to be unaffected by the brutality of the attack.

"It is done"

"What are you saying? The wall hasn´t moved an inch"

"My hand is done. I think that my bones are broken. This wall is really hard"

"How troublesome" Linhardt said, casting a healing spell. "Give me some time to read the glyphs. Most of them aren´t used anymore so I need some time to figure them out"

As Linhardt sat in front of the wall they didn´t have too much to do. She could also feel a strange power coming from the other side of the wall, although she had doubts if it was wise to unseal whatever was waiting to the other side. Next to him was Constance. As they walked through the walls, she had the opportunity to talk with her. She was eager to recover the position her family had lost as a consequence of the last Dagda-Brigid war, but she couldn´t simply trust her words. "She appears to be a capable mage, but I won´t consider her propositions until I know more about her" she thought.

"Balthie, how about you return to the surface and pay a visit to my brother? I´m sure he will pleased to see you again"

"I´m planning on doing that, but first I have to get rid of some of my debts. I was planning to work as a mercenary or something"

"As a mercenary you would spend most of your life working and you will have plenty of debts to pay"

"In that case I should sell that cup. In case we find a treasure to the other side of this wall I may be free of most of my debts" Balthus laughed.

"I think that I have discovered how to unlock the path" Linhardt said, standing up again.

"What should we do?"

"We must pay a price to enter"

"I´m sorry, I´m broke" Balthus said, checking his pockets.

"I don´t mean that kind of price. This wall demands life" he said as silence spread among them.

"Then it isn´t worth the try. We aren´t here to do such things" Hapi said looking to the rest of them with a serious expression. "If the thieves are so eager to take the Chalice, then let them be"

"She is right. There is no point of doing something like that. I don´t want to lose any of you" Dimitri said with a serious expression.

"How about we find another entrance. We could destroy the walls next to it"

"It would be a meaningless task, Claude. I can sense a magic barrier extended through all the area. The person that prepared this barrier knew what they were doing. If we tried to do something like that, we would only waste or time or worse we could die if the area crumbles"

"Then there is no point…" she was starting to say when Byleth approached the wall. As he did so he took one of his gloves off and unsheathed the dagger she had gifted to him a lifetime ago.

"My Teacher, what are you…" With a swift movement her Professor made a cut in his hand, blood pouring from his wound. As he touched the wall with his hand stained in blood the glyphs turned crimson red and the stoned Chalice started to fill with the blood of the Professor as if the wall was actively drinking the blood of his hand. When the stoned Chalice was filled by his blood, the wall before them disappeared, a new passage opened in front of them.

"How interesting, Professor. Most of us considered that the wall demanded our life, yet it is true that the blood within our bodies is the true source of it. How could you figure it out? I didn´t expect something like this to happen"

"I just had the feeling it could work" Byleth said looking at his wound. Blood was still pouring from it, although he didn´t seem to mind too much.

"Linhardt, apply healing magic to the Professor"

"Said and done" Linhardt said placing his hands on the Professor hand, but nothing happened. "Eh, how strange? No matter how much magic use, nothing seems to happen"

"Could it be a curse?" Hapi asked, her eyes alerted.

"If it was something like a curse the Professor would be already dead. No this must be something different. Perhaps the strong magic that I sense here is acting as a barrier to my own. In that case we don´t have other option but to continue our path. Don´t worry Professor, to die from a wound like this you would need several days"

"Those words are encouraging at all" Edelgard sighed. "My Teacher, the next time you do something like this, please tell us in advance. Something worse could have happened"

"I will remember it. I´m happy to know that you worry about me" he said with a look that made her blush.

"That look on your face is really strong, Teach" Claude laughed.

"A-Anyway, since we are here, we should continue to find out what is awaiting us"

With nothing else to say they continued through the new tunnel opened before us. It didn´t take too much time until they found a staircase that lead them to the surface.

"What is this place? I haven´t seen a place like this before" Balthus said as he looked to his surroundings. They appeared to have arrived to a forest, yet she could feel it wasn´t an ordinary one. Strange statues were scattered between the trees, signs of excessive use among them.

"This place stinks of magic. I can feel it" Hapi said. "I don´t have a good feeling about this"

"I must agree with you, even my pathetic magical capabilities are able to sense a strange energy coming from this area. I apologize for guiding all of you to such a dangerous place"

"Constance, why are you talking so strange?"

"You don´t need to worry about someone so pitiful as I, dear Balthus. I beg you to place your worries on a person that deserves it more"

"Dear Balthus? This place is really strange if she is saying something like this"

She was about to say something when she saw something that caught her attention. In front of them was a cliff with a crest carved on it. As she took a closer look, she realized the crest represented there was the Crest of Flames. She wasn´t the only one to realize this as the Professor approached her.

"Why is the Crest of Flames here? Is this place related to the origins of the crest?" she wondered as she looked at her surroundings. Apart from the rusted statues there was nothing in the forest, as if nothing else was there.

"There aren´t even birds singing. This place is highly unnatural" she thought when she was suddenly pushed to the ground. As she was pushed to the ground an explosion happened, covering the area next to them in debris.

"Are you ok, Edelgard?"

"I am, thanks to you" she said as she stood up again, her weapon ready for combat.

"Those who dare to enter this holy place deserve no compassion" said a mechanical voice from the deeps of the forest, a few seconds later its owner appeared, leaving everyone speechless.

"What kind of creature is this?" a surprised Dimitri asked.

"In any case it doesn´t appear to be from this world" she thought as she analyzed it. It had the appearance of a human, but no human was even taller than the trees around them. The creature was wearing a battle armor and its face was covered by a golden helmet.

"You must be humans, although I sense something strange" the giant golem said as it looked to Byleth. "Human or not this place will be your final resting place. The crime for entering this place will be your life. No mortal shall use again the ancient treasure"

"The ancient treasure? Then that story was true" Yuri said as he unsheathed his sword. "It seems that this thing won´t let us peacefully return. It is time to show him some manners"

"A fight? I´m with you Yuri" Balthus said as he prepared his gantlets.

"So arrogant, your death awaits" the Golem said as some of the ancient statues around them returned to life. Among them she could see humans, although their faces were blurred, as if they weren´t completely real

"Battle formation now! Mages, stay in the middle. We will cover you as we advance. We have to take it down, before everything gets worse" Byleth shouted as he unsheathed his own weapon.

They didn´t have too much time left as the first wave of enemies attacked them. The ancient statues were slow and clumsy but the humans were compensating for their lack of speed. An armored knight tried to smash her head with its great hammer before she counterattacked and smashed him to the ground. As she did so it disappeared as if no one was there.

"There are illusions, yet they are capable of fighting. This kind of magic its really advanced. In that case there must be some truth behind that story" she thought.

The illusions weren´t that durable as their human counterparts, but they had the numbers.

"They are trying to surround us. We have to avoid it at all costs" Byleth shouted as he destroyed a group of illusions.

"Said and done" Balthus laughed as he opened a way, punching his foes to oblivion.

Jumping to a side she avoided an attack aimed to her. Some of the statues were almost on them and no matter how many magic explosions hit them they continued to advance.

"I´ve never seen something like this" Claude said as he tried to hit the statues in the limbs and arms.

"We will have to overcome them with our sheer strength. Dimitri, Claude help me!" she shouted as she charged against the closest statue to them.

The living statue was well protected, but its close distance attacks were too slow. Attacking with brute force, she destroyed one of the limbs of the statue as Dimitri did the same with the other one. Falling on its knees, Claude pierced one of the statues eyes, making it stop for good.

"That´s what I call teamwork, we could do it more frequently" Claude laughed.

"Even if I appreciate your suggestion now isn´t the time for chattering. There are plenty of enemies left to defeat" Edelgard said, her eyes alert.

The other side of the battle field was covered by Byleth and some of the leaders of the Abyss. Advancing from two different flanks, the tactic of surrounding them proved to be ineffective. However, enemies kept appearing around them, showing no signs of exhaustion.

"No matter how many we take down, they keep appearing" she thought as she caught her breath. Her axe had cracks all over the surface, a few more uses and it would surely shatter.

"We need to defeat that Golem!" Byleth shouted as he unsheathed the Sword of the Creator. Blood was still pouring from his injured hand, but the look of his face was filled with determination. "Attack with all your might and cover me, I will strike it down!" he said as he ran against the next wave of enemies.

"Charge!" she shouted, following his command. Alongside her she could hear the rest of the students chasing them as they attacked the illusions and statues that stood on their way. Byleth was few meters ahead from them his sword spreading destruction among the enemy lines. Mere meters were separating him and the Golem, although he had the risk of being overwhelmed by the surrounding statues.

"One more push!" she shouted as she smashed to the ground another illusion, her axe already menacing to break.

"Humans are really interesting creatures. Your desires will be your undoing, yet I sense something strange in you. Were we made by the same creator?" she could hear the Golem ask with a mechanical voice.

"I don´t know what you mean, but I will stop you here and now" Byleth said as he jumped on the Golem, his sword piercing through the golden helmet that covered its head.

"Coming from a human this amount of power is impressive, but only a fool would defy me" the Golem said as spear of light pierced her Professor´s body, sending him to the ground.

"No!" she shouted as she tried to approach him, but a new statue was already blocking her path. Blocking the incoming attack, her axe finally shattered, only her dagger left to face the giant statue in front of her. As she was prepared to face another attack her attention was suddenly caught by a sudden light.

"This is not the time I will fall; I will continue fighting with everything I have!" Byleth shouted as he stood up again, green sparks released from the Sword of the Creator.

"Humans are more interesting that expected, but your path ends here" the Golem said as it released another spear of light. Avoiding the attack Byleth jumped on the Golem once again and with his sword he pierced through the inner mechanism of the Golem. As he did so, the illusions around them started to fade away and the remaining operative statue started to collapse.

"It ended" she thought as she observed how Byleth landed next to her. "My Teacher, are you ok?" she said as she approached him.

"All of you did a wonderful job. I´m proud of all of you" he said with a faint smile as he looked at her, although what froze her wasn´t his smile but his eyes. Emerald eyes were looking at her, the very same eyes of the archbishop. Before she could process it, he collapsed on his knees, exhausted. Rushing to his position she couldn´t avoid thinking about those eyes.

"You shouldn´t have overcommitted" she said as she gentle placed her hand on his chest. As she did so a strange feeling traversed through her hand. The moment she looked at her hand, she realized she must have had casted a spell.

"Thank you Edelgard" Byleth said as he opened his eyes again, their color its usual self. As she helped him to stand again, she observed her surroundings. Most of the students appeared to be exhausted, but they were alive.

"That was interesting, Edelgard. I didn´t think that you were able to cast spells" Linhardt said with an analytical look.

"Me neither, I just felt a strange energy through my body"

"That means that you have a natural synergy with magic. Perhaps your emotions allowed you to release your hidden talent. Anyway, thank you for doing my job, I guess. I´m completely exhausted so don´t get into trouble until I get a good nap" Linhardt said as he yawned.

"The forest has returned to its usual self, although I still feel a strange power near us" Hapi said as she approached a pillar. "There are three pillars that are releasing a strange energy"

"Could it mean that the Chalice is hidden in one of them? In that case we just have to check one after one" Balthus said as he approached the nearest pillar.

"Wait Balthus!"

"What´s the matter, Claude?"

"Don´t you think it is really strange that the three pillars look the same? If I were to place a treasure and wanted to make sure that no one could access it I would place a trap"

"So, you are saying that two of these pillars are traps that are waiting to be triggered?" Dimitri asked as he prepared his lance for combat.

"That´s the feeling I have. At least I would do something like that"

"I agree with Claude. Even if we have destroyed our enemies, that doesn´t mean that we are free of any risks"

"In that case which one is the one we have to trigger? They look the same to me" Balthus said scratching his head.

"Apparently yes, but there must be differences since I highly doubt that a protective mechanism like this could lack any logic behind it" Linhardt said as he touched one of the pillars. "This one is definitively a trap"

"I had the same feeling as you, but comparing my knowledge to you would be insulting to your intelligence"

"Constance, you always act really weird when the sun is out" Balthus sighed.

It took several minutes until Linhardt finally stopped in front of one of the stone pillars. When he placed his hand in a small hole of its surface it reacted to its touch, revealing the thing it was protecting.

"The Chalice…it was real after all" Yuri murmured next to her. The Chalice was of a magnificent color, rubies, emeralds and sapphires on its sides, but what caught her attention the most was the golden light that was emitting of its own.

"It really is a magnificent object. I understand now why they wanted to steal it" Claude commented next to her. "Well, let´s take it and leave, I don´t like this place a bit"

"Claude is right, we should leave, there is nothing left to do here"

"Do you really think that you can simply escape from us? An unforgivable sacrilege has been committed in this sacred land. All of you shall perish under the fair judgement of the eternal light" said a mechanical voice from the depths of the forest.

"Another Golem? You must be kidding"

"Run! There is no point in fighting again. Secure the Chalice and leave this place!" Byleth ordered. "I will protect the rearguard"

"You have heard him, run!"

They ran through the forest avoiding the projectiles aimed to them. The Golems were slow, but the illusions were quickly approaching them. She felt that one hand grabbed her from behind, but the grabbing suddenly disappeared.

"Keep running" Byleth shouted as he ran as well a few meters behind her.

Most of the students had already entered the tunnel again. "Only a bit more and this will have end for good" she thought.

"Dammit! My leg!" Claude cried, a spectral arrow piercing his leg.

"Claude!" Byleth shouted as he approached him. "Only a few more meters, I will carry you" But the illusions were almost on them.

"Dimitri, help me buy them some time!" she said as she unsheathed her dagger.

"Of course, I won´t leave them in peril" Dimitri said as he repelled an attack from one of the illusions. Golems were already appearing in front of them, some of them already preparing its magic attacks against them.

"Enter the tunnel now!" Byleth shouted as he carried Claude with him. Running as fast as she could she entered the tunnel as the magic attacks impacted on its entrance, making it collapse. The dust and rocks falling above them was menacing to suffocate them. She could barely see anything when she was hit by one of the rocks that was falling from the ceiling.

"I can´t end like this" she thought as her vision blurred when a pair of hands grabbed her. The pair of hands gently took her between his arms and they escaped from the crumbling tunnel before it completely collapsed.

"Thank you for taking care of me, my Teacher" she whispered, exhausted.

"I´ve already lost my father, I don´t want to lose you too" Byleth said as he carried her to where everyone was already waiting. He had blood on his face, but his breath wasn´t erratic. "Thank you for what you did before. I really appreciate it" he said as he gently placed her back on the ground.

The rest of the students were still catching their breath but it was only the House leaders and Byleth the ones which appeared to be the most exhausted.

"Thank you, Teach. I owe you one" Claude said with a serious expression, a bandage already applied in the area of the wound.

"This will buy us some time until I´ve rest a bit" Linhardt said as he examined the wound. "Anyway, that was pretty close, but we should leave this place we don´t know if they could chase us"

"The smart guy is right. Let´s leave already. Those who can walk by their own cover the rearguard and the front. Those with injuries, stay in the middle" Yuri ordered. As he said so they could hear explosions behind them.

"You must be kidding, they are coming" said an alerted Hilda.

"Don´t stop and don´t stay behind!"

"The Chalice must be a really powerful device if they are so insistent. Could it be that it can bring back the dead?" she wondered as she kept running away.

"This way, we have to get them lost" Yuri said as he entered an auxiliary tunnel.

The explosions had already stopped but the silence was worst than everything. She had the feeling they were approaching them, yet everything was so silent.

"There is a bridge a bit ahead of us. If we cross it then we will have nothing to worry about!"

"Your suffering has only begun" said a voice behind them as a magic spear impacted a few meters away from them.

The bridge was already in front of them. It appeared to be built hundreds of years ago, but it was sturdy enough to allow them arrive to cross it. Both sides of the bridge were surrounded by darkness. A fall from the bridge would lead to certain death in the case they would fall.

"Quick or we will be killed!"

Golems and illusions were already appearing, some of them were preparing their attacks.

"Constance, aim to one of the stalactites over us!"

Everything happened in a sudden. As soon as the spell impacted, the stalactites of the cave fell on the bridge, making it collapse and bringing with it the Golems and illusions, which suddenly fell to their doom.

"That was a really close call" Claude said, catching his breath.

"I thought we weren´t going to make it" a paler than usual Linhardt said as he sat down.

"We don´t know if there are more of them after us. We should take advantage of the situation and continue"

"The Professor is right; we should continue before they can reappear again"

The return to the Abyss took less time than expected. The auxiliary tunnel had led them to an area closer to the village and in less than an hour they could see the torches of the underground village.

"We got the Chalice and everyone is alive. I think we´ve earned a good rest. I´m overworking, Professor"

"Sorry Linhardt. I know that you have done your best"

"I can´t believe they chased us down to this place. They appeared to have a conscience of their own" Ashe murmured.

"The only thing clear is that they cared about this little cup. At least we are the ones to have it" Claude said as he cherished the area where he had been hit by an arrow.

"It truly is a dangerous device if it was so tightly guarded. We must never allow it to be misuse" Dimitri said with a tired expression on his face.

"We will have to talk with Aelfric about it. Those devices must have been developed by the Church. We need a proper explanation after everything that has already happened. How troublesome"

"Don´t worry, Hapi. I will make sure to contact him when we arrive"

The village was more active than usual with soldiers nervously talking between them.

"Why are so many of you here?

"Yuri, we were so worried. We feared that you had been abducted too!"

"Abducted? What do you mean?"

"We were making sure that things run smoothly here when we received this" the warrior said, showing him a bag stained in blood. "It contained a message. It says that we have to bring the Chalice to the assigned place before the sun sets. Otherwise Aelfric will end like this"

It wasn´t unnecessary to check the inside of the bag to know the content of the veiled threat, but how they could already know about it?

"There is a traitor among us" she thought, wondering what was the real purpose of those behind the Chalice.


	51. Betrayal

"How could these results be correct?" he wondered as he analyzed for the tenth time the results in front of him. "In that case, why he hasn´t been overwhelmed by the corruption?"

After the latent state in which master Thales was, he had been turned into the second in command while Myson prepared his own experiments. He had the duty of getting rid of him, but after treating the injuries of his master, his determination was beginning to fade.

"The genetic material obtained from his injuries reveal an unusual high level of ionizing radiation. Such a level that makes our own weapons look like meaningless toys. However, there are no visible mutations in the host of the Fell Star. Could this mean that they are in a symbiotic relation?" he asked himself as he adjusted his lens.

The results were fascinating and terrifying and the same time. The fact that a human body could withstand such level of radiation without mutating into an unreasonable beast was something fascinating, but he was afraid of the consequences that could bring to their kin. According to their studies, crestless humans were unable to withstand the corruption of the Crest Stones without mutating into beasts. The exception were the bearers of Crests, which had a higher tolerance to such problematic, but weren´t immune to it either. Even the apex of their investigation, the Flame Emperor, would turn into a brainless beast if it were to be exposed to such levels of energy.

However, the host of the Fell Star appeared to be not only immune to the radiation within his body, but also appeared to control it to some extent. The replica of the Crest of Flames that were able to develop during the Flame Emperor project gave him a better insight about the regenerative capabilities of such Crest. They already knew that the Crest stone was within his body, but the regenerative capabilities must be of such degree that they surpass the problem of a constant exposure to the Crest stone. "What could she be thinking when she did something like this?" Their kind had always been arrogant, but if the host had the risk of losing its sanity it could lead them to a catastrophe of colossal magnitudes. However, if the host´s consciousness was replaced by the Fell Star it would be an important problem as well.

"If the Fell Star finally takes control of its host, we will be doomed" he thought as he shivered. Trying to get rid of him by conventional means was likely to proof unsuccessful. The only plausible option was to trap him within the void, but they needed a place unstable enough to access what remained of Zahras. "Will the shadow be able to devour this amount of power? If we are lucky, they will kill each other and we will be able to reclaim the city again". Zahras had an invaluable amount of knowledge waiting to be rediscovered again. It was the key to this world and the rest of the universe.

"We tried reaching the sky and we were burned in the process" he lamented as he observed the different samples he had on his desk. They were able to keep some of their technology, but the lost of the city meant a lost of progress of several thousands of years. "At least we aren´t primitive beings like those on the surface". It was infuriating they enjoyed the light of the sun despite their treachery. "Kneeling before those who had sworn to destroy us…what a bunch of cowards" he thought as he stood up again. After hours of investigation his legs hurt, but he didn´t have time to lose. Of all places there was one that met all the requirements to open a temporal portal to their lost city, but the place was heavily protected by the devices of their enemy.

"Solon. I have received an information that could be of high utility" said Clion, appearing in front of him.

"Please, tell me. I was about to leave, but it is my duty to take responsibility of everything until master Thales fully recovers from its injuries", he said offering one of the high ranked officials a seat.

"We have received an interesting report from the areas of the monastery. According to our source a battle had taken place in the sealed forest"

"Who battled there?"

"Unfortunately, we don´t know, but most of the statues appeared to be destroyed"

"That could benefit us. If the defense mechanism is weakened, we could take advantage of the situation to prepare the place for our own ritual. That place is full of energy. We can surely canalize that amount of energy to create a portal and send the Fell Star to its eternal confinement"

"There were also signs of manipulation of some of the pillars. It appears to be that something was extracted from them"

"That must be the Chalice" he thought. When he first had heard from it, he had the hope of using it for their own objectives, but after investigating more into it, he had discarded it as a useful device. "That fool only wants to bring her back, but the method had proved to fail. Only with the use of a host could she be able to achieve something like that, and even in that case the probabilities of getting an exact replica of the Fell Star were nonexistent. Her offspring must certainly miss her, despite all the crimes they have committed to this world" he said to himself. "Don´t worry about it. There is nothing of interest there to us. The important thing we now know is that the defensive system is weakened. We must take advantage of it as soon as possible. Prepare a battalion. We will depart from here shortly"

"As you wish" Clion nodded to him, before leaving him alone.

"If we want our plans to succeed, we need to get rid of him, although it would be a pity if we lose the Sword of the Creator. Such weapon is worth of a lifelong study" he thought as he returned to his workplace, his resolution renewed. In front of him there were holograms of the different planets they had been able to identify during millenniums. Although their technology had suffered due to the fall of the capital, they had been able to keep the stellar maps created by their ancestors.

"Bring me back to Sirius" he ordered to the projector. As he said so the images of the different planets and systems disappeared, allowing him to focus on the hologram in front of him. One brilliant star appeared in front of him, although a closer look allowed the observer to notice a star of a smaller size orbiting next to it.

"A system with two stars" he thought. Most systems like their own only had one star, but the Universe had proofed to be filled with countless mysteries. However, the stars weren´t the object of his search. As he took a closer look, the hologram of a planet with an ever-changing atmosphere appeared in front of him. It was the last vestige of their apex and it could proof to be the key to their return.

"I need to learn everything about it" he thought as he adjusted his lens and burrowed himself into his analysis.

**12/27 Ethereal Moon**

"How could they know that we have the Chalice? This is too strange, there must be a traitor between us!" Constance said looking at each one of them with an inquisitive look.

"Another betrayal? How many times do I have to be betrayed until I can find some peace? This is so infuriating"

"Calm down, Constance, Hapi. We couldn´t discard the possibility that someone from the outside could be the one acting in the shadows. If we can´t trust each other then we won´t be able to save Aelfric, don´t you think Professor?" Yuri said looking at him with a confident look.

"I agree. We have to trust each other if we want to save him. If we start fighting against each other we won´t be able to know the entire truth about all of this"

"You really sound confident, but we don´t really know how many enemies are waiting for our arrival. Are we really going to give them the Chalice? I don´t have good vibes about it. We should destroy it"

"If we destroy it, Aelfric will die, he had been taken care of all of us. It is the time to return the favor. My fists are all yours, Professor. If it is for Aelfric, I will be doing my best"

"We will need more than just your fists if we want to succeed, Balthus. Desperate times require desperate solutions. Hapi when we arrive you will have to do "that""

"Are you serious, Yuri? You know what is going to happen"

"I agree with Hapi, if "that" is the solution to our problems we should just hand them the Chalice"

"What are you talking about?" she asked intrigued. They were talking as if Hapi had a hidden device.

"It is a long story, but the moment that Hapi sighs, things are going to get interesting. Don´t worry, I wouldn´t be asking something like that if I didn´t think that it is the best outcome, given the circumstances"

"That sounds like a joke, but looking at all of you there must be some true behind it. Let´s save that old man then, my bow is ready"

"Count with my lance too"

"So troublesome, when are we going to rest? Edelgard, when everything ends, I will be staying in bed at least for two weeks, no exceptions"

"I will consider it after everything ends. I´m counting with you for the time being"

"Understood" Linhardt yawned.

"According to the message, they will be waiting for us in the surroundings of the Old Chapel. We must be there before the sun sets. We have to hurry up"

The moment Yuri talked about the Old Chapel, Byleth´s expression appeared to darken, but he said nothing.

"What should we do if we get spotted by the Church?"

"I know that you don´t like the Church, but in case that we need their cooperation, so be it. Let´s go, I know a shortcut"

…

The rains of the last days had turned the terrain surrounding the old chapel into mud, although the scarred terrain in some areas where the silent witnesses of the battle they´ve had there in what appeared to be a lifetime ago.

"This place is perfect for an ambush. I don´t like it" Hapi muttered as they checked the terrain around them.

"They think that they have the high ground, but we will show them that they are wrong. I´ve spent my entire life taking risky bets and I´ve always had luck on my side. This time won´t be different, even if I have to pay a price for it" Yuri said with confident smile, although his eyes were telling otherwise. "Professor, after we complete the rescue, I entrust you with the rest. I´m counting with you"

"What do you…"

"So you have finally arrived. I was already getting bored. I was about to cut one of his fingers off. You shouldn´t make me wait like that" said a man toying with a dagger in his hands, a sadistic smile on his face. He was accompanied by a group of soldiers and more of them were around them with their weapons ready just in case. "My name is Metodey and I´m here to take that little cup of yours. Give it to me and the deal is over"

"Don´t do it, we shouldn´t trust such device to someone like him. It is…"

"Shut up! Since when do you have the right to speak?" Metodey said as he slapped Aelfric. "Don´t dare to come any closer or I will cut open his throat"

"That accent, he must be from the Empire" she thought as she prepared her axe.

"Am I ruining the mood? It is simple, you give me the Chalice and I return you this guy. Everyone is happy and continues with their lives" Metodey said as if he was talking to a bunch of children.

"How do we know that you will be true to your word? Who is the one hiring you?" she asked

"Too many questions. I don´t like answering questions, I´m usually the one making them, so could you please shut up. You have really nice eyes, but if you keep spouting nonsense from your filthy mouth, I will have to leave you blind"

"Don´t dare to menace her" Byleth said placing himself before her, an irritated expression on his face.

"Calm down. I just want to do my job. I mean no offense. Place the Chalice over that rock and return where you are. I will pick it and then you can do whatever you want with this guy"

"Fine, I will do it" Yuri said as he silently nodded to Hapi. As he did so Hapi started to sigh.

"It wasn´t that difficult, don´t you think?" Metodey nodded as he saw how Yuri placed the Chalice on a rock a few meters from them. "This is going to be the…" what he was saying was interrupted by a howl.

"A wolf?" she wondered, but it wasn´t the only sound coming from their surroundings.

"Monsters!" shouted one of the hired soldiers as a giant eagle appeared from the skies and crushed one of the soldiers next to him. In a matter of seconds their surroundings had turned into a monster hive.

"I think I´ve alerted all the monsters wandering near the monastery. I don´t think that more of them will come, but be ready just in case. So troublesome" Hapi said as she casted a spell against one of the soldiers.

"What kind of magic can do something like this? My interest has been renewed" Linhardt said as he prepared his healing spells.

Byleth had already recovered the Chalice and had freed Aelfric from his captors, while they were securing the perimeter around him. Most of the hired soldiers were fighting against the beasts, but they weren´t completely safe. Some of the enemy soldiers were already preparing a counterattack while Metodey was trying to assemble their units before their lines collapsed.

"Take the Chalice! I don´t care if you kill the rest of them, but make sure to get it. It is the golden opportunity to a life without worries"

"The fact that someone could commit such crimes just for some gold is infuriating" Dimitri said as he killed one of the enemy soldiers.

"This is the world where we live, a world where the lives of many are decided by a price" she said as she attacked and defeated an armored knight.

"This is not the time to talk about this kind of things, guys. Let´s defeat them and enjoy a good meal after all of this end" Claude smiled as he shot an arrow to one of the thieves approaching them from behind.

A small group of soldiers was already preparing to attack them when they were suddenly engulfed by crimson flames. When the flames extinguished only ashes remained of them. She thought that Byleth was the responsible of such attack, but was surprised when she saw it was Aelfric.

"Don´t worry, Byleth. I can handle my own quite well" Aelfric said with a faint smile. "We should evacuate the area, before the situation gets worse"

Their enemy was trying to overwhelm the beasts around them, but they had to stop their attacks too.

"Keep moving, they are just a bunch of dogs. Don´t give up now!" Metodey shouted as he killed one of the giant beasts. "This is the opportunity of my life. I won´t let any of you escape!"

"In that case face me" Byleth said advancing to Metodey´s position with his sword unsheathed. They were about to clash against each other when one of the monsters appeared.

"Get rid of the beast and secure the area" she shouted as she attacked the giant eagle in front of them.

"That´s the fighting spirit I like the most" Balthus grinned as he jumped and punched in the face the giant beast. As he did so the giant eagle cried and started to fly, taking Balthus in one of its claws.

"Ugh, I´m screwed! Bring it down!"

"Said and done" Claude said as he shot an arrow. The moment it impacted in one of the beast eyes, Balthus was released from the claws of the beast, his fall softened by the branches of one of the trees nearby.

"You could have killed me with that!"

"You didn´t have to worry. I usually have luck on my side" Claude laughed as he prepared another arrow.

The beasts were getting slayed, but their enemy had already suffered heavy losses. Some of them had taken shelter in one of the abandoned buildings in the area surrounding the Old Chapel, but they were still facing resistance.

"I surrender" cried one of the soldiers when he realized it was cornered. As he said so he was trapped by magic ropes casted by Hapi.

"If you surrender, we will let you live, but you have to drop your arms or otherwise we will get rid of you" Byleth said with his sword ready for combat.

"What about the gold?" asked one of the soldiers.

"Are you stupid? Forget about it, I don´t want to die here in this stupid forest. I surrender" said one of the armored soldiers.

With that precedent most of the remaining enemy forces started to surrender, although some of them more willingly than others.

"Where is Metodey?" she wondered as she didn´t see him among the surrendered enemies. "We should be careful their leader…"

"The Chalice or I cut his throat" shouted a voice behind them. Metodey had a dagger next to Linhardt´s neck, which was extremely pale as he saw a trickle of blood on his neck.

"Blood, I don´t like seeing it, Professor, please" Linhardt implored.

In a split of a second, they were in a dire situation. Balthus and Dimitri were making sure that the surrendered enemies did nothing. Claude had his bow prepared, but Metodey was using Linhardt´s body as a shield and there was the uncertainty that Linhardt could be shot and magic attacks would affect both of them so they didn´t have an option free of risks. Byleth was approaching his hand to the area of his chest as if he was preparing to do something when she stepped forward.

"Don´t act like a fool, don´t you understand how dire is your current situation?"

"What are you saying? I´m the one that I will be living in luxury for the rest of my life if I just get this little job right. Step aside if you have nothing to say, stupid girl"

"Even at a time like this you don´t seem to understand. The fact that you come from the Empire is an embarrassing thought. You must have been a simple burglar before you started climbing the social ladder with crimes, am I mistaken?"

"How do you know where do I come from?"

"The way you speak betrays you. You said before that I had beautiful eyes, quite unusual eyes I dare to say. If you don´t drop your weapon, no matter how much gold you earn you won´t live another day to enjoy it"

"No, no way" Metodey said in shock as he realized the meaning of her words. "I´ve screwed up!"

"Now!"

With a swift movement Byleth disarmed Metodey with a quick swift of the Sword of the Creator, while Linhardt used a fire spell to get rid of Metodey´s grip. He was about to unsheathe another sword, but she was already on him.

"This will be the last time that you cause any harm" she sentenced as her axe crushed his chest.

"I just wanted an easy…gain…" he muttered as he passed away.

"You were really scary, Edelgard, but I must admit that it was a good idea to spoil his focus. Now everything is done" Claude smiled.

"You must keep your promise then, Claude" Hilda said with a teasing smile.

"I know, I know. I will be true to my word, don´t worry about it"

"You did a splendid job Ashe"

"I´m so happy to hear that from you, your Highness"

"Please, don´t be like Dedue at a time like this. You can just call me by my own name. We are friends after all"

"Sorry, I sometimes forget that you don´t really like being called like that"

"Professor! It seems that Yuri was injured. Could you please come over here?" Aelfric asked with a worried expression on his face.

Intrigued by it she decided to follow them. Yuri was close to their location and was cherishing the area of his leg, leaning his back against a tree.

"Sorry for spoiling the little celebration, Professor. I´ve got hit in one leg so I will need you to stand up again"

"There is no problem with that" Byleth said as he offered his hand to him.

With a smile on his face Yuri extended his hand to reach his, but she sensed something odd in his movement.

"Byleth, the dagger!"

In a split of a second Byleth avoided the attack aimed at him, but the Chalice he had been protecting had landed in Yuri´s hands. She was about to charge at him when she received the impact of a spell that sent her to the ground.

"Edelgard!" Byleth was unsheathing his sword when he received another magic attack as well.

"Don´t worry, Byleth. I don´t intend to kill any of you. Thank you, Yuri, you´ve done a terrific work" he said as he casted magic ropes around her body and Byleth´s.

"I told you, deceiving is the best thing I can do" he laughed, although there was sadness in his eyes.

"What the hell, Yuri? You bastard!" Balthus shouted, but he was stopped by a spell aimed at him from a group of bushes next to them. The magic attacks immobilized most of them, and those that avoided the attacks couldn´t counterattack since Constance, Hapi and Balthus were already trapped by the new unknown forces.

"What´s the meaning of this?" Dimitri furiously asked.

"That´s not fair game, what are you doing?"

"There is no time to ask unnecessary questions. I need the four of you to fulfill the objective of my whole live"

"Another betrayal. It doesn´t matter how many times I´ve been betrayed, it always leaves a soar taste in my mouth"

"The fact that someone so insignificant like me could be trapped in this situation is comical at best. The Goddess must really despise me as the sun over us"

"Damn, Aelfric. I thought you were a nice guy, but I guess I was wrong" Balthus said as he spitted to the ground. "But you, Yuri, why? We´ve been through so many things together I thought we really were friends"

"I didn´t think that you would be so emotional. I guess, that you don´t completely know a person until you´ve really hurt them at least once. I´m sorry, but I´m doing what I have to" he then looked at Byleth. "You were a nice Professor while it lasted. Apart from that I won´t make any excuses. I leave the rest in your hands" he said as he waved a hand. Sounds of horns could be heard from their position. It appeared to be that someone was approaching.

"We are running out of time. I hope that one day you can forgive me, Byleth. I really hope that one day you will understand why I am doing what I have to. I will pray for the safety of you and the others. Farewell until then" Aelfric said as a purple mist covered him and the four other leaders of the Abyss. As the magic clouds disappeared the sound of the horns grew stronger and finally the forces of the Church appeared.

"So you were here, thanks Goddess" Rhea said as she hurried to Byleth´s side, casting a spell that release all of them from the previous enchantment. "I was so worried about you; you should have stayed in your room. After losing Jeralt I couldn´t afford losing you, my dear" she said embracing him, as a mother would embrace her own son…or as a lover.

Looking at her and noticing her voluptuous body, she was feeling upset, and it wasn´t only because she knew the real identity of the archbishop. By the way the rest of the students were observing them, she wasn´t the only one to be affected by the affection from the archbishop.

"Lady Rhea, could you explain to us how did you know that we were here?" she asked after clearing her throat several times.

"I apologize for losing my manners" she said as she helped Byleth to stand up again. "We have been searching for all of you since your sudden disappearance. At first, I thought that it would be a simple matter, but things appeared to be more complicated than I considered at first. The ancient documents regarding the Chalice of the Beginnings had been accessed by unworthy beings. The Chalice by itself is powerless, but if the four disciples reunite once again, the situation will be dire"

"The four disciples? They must be dead by now…wait, do you mean that the four disciples had descendants?" asked a surprised Linhardt.

"Exactly and if I am not mistaken, the four students in the Abyss are their direct descendants"

"Wait a second, then it is true that the Chalice can bring back the dead?"

"The Chalice is only able to regenerate a body as long as the soul remains intact. According to the ancient documents, the last time it was used it ended badly. Aelfric must be trying to start the ritual once again, but it is too dangerous. If we don´t stop him now the monastery will be in great peril"

"Even if we want to stop them, we don´t know the location of the ritual. If we had been faster…" Dimitri lamented as he looked at the tip of his lance.

"There is no need to worry about it. The ritual of the beginning must take place in a place with a close bond with the Goddess. Time is required to complete the ritual and it also requires vast amounts of energy"

"It must be the Holy Mausoleum" Byleth said as he readjusted his weapon.

"Exactly we must head there at once, before it is too late"

"Lady Rhea!" Alois shouted as he suddenly arrived. "Thieves had appeared around the village next to the monastery. We need reinforcements as soon as possible or we could be overwhelmed! Byleth I didn´t expect to see you here!" he said shocked when he realized Byleth´s presence.

"Aelfric must be trying to split our forces in case we want to disturb the ritual, causing a distraction" Rhea said with a serious expression on her face. "Even if I am fond of him, I cannot allow him to continue with this nonsense. Alois, go with Catherine to the village and stop the attacks. I will head with the students to the Holy Tomb. There is no time to waste. May the Goddess protect you"

"Understood!"

"I am aware that all of you are exhausted, but we must avoid the risks of this ritual"

"Well, since we are already at this point, there is no other option but to end this story, don´t you think?"

"I´m with Claude, we need to stop Aelfric and Yuri and save all of them"

"I agree" Byleth simply nodded as he looked to the archbishop.

"The look in your eyes give me confidence in our victory" Rhea said with a smile as she casted a powerful warp.

"The rite of rebirth. I wonder what kind of elements are required to make it take place" she wondered as she was engulfed in the purple air she had grown used to see as the Flame Emperor.


	52. At what cost? Feelings like Silver Snow

"Finally, the day has come. The day in which everything I´ve been fighting for turns into reality. It has been a long fight, yet there is only one more step. I wish Jeralt was alive too, but if this works…" Aelfric said talking to himself as he prepared the ritual. Masked mages had placed magic seals around them to avoid any chance of running away.

"Yuri, why are you with that asshole if you are going to be part in the ritual? It doesn´t make any sense!"

"I had no other option; it was this or the death of innocents"

"Do you mean I am guilty of something? Well, I´m broke, but that isn´t enough, I think"

"This is outrageous, Yuri! Of all people you…"

"I didn´t want to be the bad guy either, but I did my best with the cards I had. You know that I like taking risky bets and today is one of them" he said with a smile as the bells started to ring.

"The bells? At this time?" asked a shocked Aelfric.

"You may think that you´ve had the upper hand on all of this, but the Abyss knows to be true to their word. I´ve been working for months with Rhea to unveil who had been accessing without authorization the ancient documents of the Church. I was forced to pretend to be working for you when you threatened the life of innocents, but that doesn´t mean that I´ve given up on my plans of catching you" he laughed. "Being the bad guy doesn´t suit you well, Aelfric. I don´t get why you want to do something like this, but it isn´t the right thing to do. Just be nice and surrender and perhaps Rhea will have mercy on you"

"Enough of your nonsense, even if reinforcements arrive, it is already too late for you! This is not the time to look back, if it means my end, so be it!" Aelfric shouted as he quickly placed a glyph in each one of them. As he did so, they were engulfed by a red aura that was being absorbed by the Chalice. "A life for another. This is the price for the things we hold dear" he said as he observed how the Chalice was filling by their own vital energy.

"I can´t…move" Balthus muttered as he tried to break free from the ropes that were imprisoning him.

"This is dark magic. I can feel it. Aelfric, dark magic is like a sword without a hilt. This could end badly for all of us"

"If this works, I will make sure to make everyone return, even all of you. When the Chalice is active again, we could recover all our dear ones, don´t you understand?"

"That´s not right, clinging onto the past will never be the right solution. Everyone has their own problems and traumas, but we have to keep going. If my words don´t persuade you, I hope that the Professor does" he smiled as he heard the sound of footsteps.

…..

"So they were here, after all" she muttered as she prepared her axe for the upcoming battle. The four leaders of the Abyss were engulfed in a red aura which was linked to the Chalice at the bottom of the area. Between them and the students there were Aelfric forces.

"The ceremony has already started. I will use my own power to slow down the process, but we have to stop before it is too late" Rhea said as she extended her arms. "I entrust you with the security of the students, Professor. Lend your hand to the Church to avoid further unnecessary sacrifices"

"I will do my best" Byleth nodded as he unsheathed his sword. "Edelgard with me. Claude and Ashe to the left. Dimitri and Hilda to the right. Linhardt, check on everyone from behind" he ordered as he advanced to the front.

"You´ve heard him. It is time to stop the ceremony."

As when they first battled months ago, the bottom of the room could be accessed by three paths, all of them heavily protected. The central path was protected by a group of mages, which released powerful bolting spells against them as they tried to approach.

"Be careful, they outrange us" Byleth alerted them as he quickly approached the mage in the middle.

"Incoming attack, prepare the barrier!"

When Byleth was about to attack one of the mages a magic barrier was erected, sending him backwards.

"How you dare to try to profane this ceremony. I will show no compassion to any of you" Aelfric shouted as he casted an intense fire spell, the moment the flames impacted to the ground several beasts started to appear from the crimson flames. "Ancient flames, I offer you a worthy sacrifice! Accept the flesh I offer you in exchange for your strength!" he said as the flame beasts looked at them. "May the flames guide you to your place of final rest."

"Ancient magic and of the worse kind, pyromancy has always been a beast tricky to master, but using this kind of magic against us…How troublesome" Linhardt sighed. "All of you, be careful, these aren´t ordinary flames, if they get you I´m not sure that I can heal all of you"

"If it weren´t for you I wouldn't know they weren´t an ordinary flame" Claude laughed.

"You have heard him, be careful!" Byleth shouted as he released a magic spell against the magic barrier, the first cracks appearing on it. "A few more hits and it will be done. Edelgard, attack the barrier with your axe!"

"It will be done" she said as she ran forward the barrier. The mages tried to hit her with their lightning spells, but they weren´t accurate enough. With one brutal hit of her axe the barrier shattered and the mages behind them were defenseless.

"Let the lesson begin!" Byleth shouted as he jumped next to her, releasing the fury of the Sword of the Creator. With their combined attacks the mages were easily defeated, but the fight wasn´t over yet as one of the flame beasts approached them. The beast had adopted the form of a gargoyle, which roared as it tried to smash them to the ground. The attacks of the beast were brutal and the areas where its attacks impacted, they were left incandescent.

"If we aren´t careful, we will be engulfed by the flames" she said as she avoided another attack. They were getting used to its attack pattern, but how could they approach a beast made of flames without getting scarred in the process?

"We will have to do ranged attacks" Byleth said as if he had read her mind. "Edelgard, I know that you have an innate magic talent. Could you canalize it into your axe?"

Closing her eyes for a moment, she tried to do as she did so, the moment she opened her eyes again she could see blue sparks releasing from the axe. Releasing the energy accumulated within the axe she aimed at the core of the flame beast, staggering it, opportunity which Byleth took advantage of to definitely destroy it with a ranged attack from the Sword of the Creator. The gargoyle roared one more time before turning into ashes.

"Great job, Edelgard, but this is not over yet. Lend me your strength" Byleth briefly smiled to her before focusing on their next enemy.

"With you by my side, there is nothing to fear" she nodded as she followed him to their next adversary.

…

As they advanced through countless enemies, they were getting closer to the area where the ritual was held, but they had to hurry up. Yuri and Balthus were heavily breathing and Hapi and Constance were barely moving.

"Even if you are trying to delay it, the ceremony is inevitable. I won´t allow any of you to destroy what I´ve been fighting for! It seems that not even the flame beasts were able to be a worthy enemy, in that case allow me to try something better" Aelfric said as he cut the palm of his hand and casted it to one of the torches, the moment the blood met the torch the light of the flame turned black.

"Aelfric, how could you dare to practice that kind of magic in a sacred place. You, of all people" Rhea cried from the entrance of the holy tomb, where she was still trying to stop the magic of the ceremony. "Everyone, be careful!" she shouted as the dark flame turned into a beast, but unlike the flame beasts they had defeated earlier, this one appeared to have a body of its own. The creature was completely amorphous, red eyes popping from flesh covered by pustules from which emanated a dark effluvium.

"We are almost there, only one final push!" Byleth shouted as he placed himself in front of the amorphous shadow.

"No matter the obstacle we have to overcome it"

"You have stolen the words from my mouth, Edelgard. You are right, let´s put an end to this" Claude smiled, readying his bow.

"With all of you I have enough strength to get through everything" Dimitri quickly nodded as he prepared his lance for a final attack.

"Attack now!" Byleth shouted as he went head on against the beast. The monster released black flames from its multiple mouths, but the attacks missed him, hitting one of the columns and melting it. As Byleth hit the beast in the face, her and Dimitri attacked the hind legs, while Claude released arrows from the sides of the beast, hitting the mysterious creature in its multiple eyes. Shortly after, the rest of the students accompanied them in the attack. The beast was unable to battle all of them at the same time. However, even with all their efforts the beast was still standing in front of them, not a single scratch on its disgusting skin.

"It doesn´t matter what you do, no ordinary human could so easily defeat this monster" Aelfric confidently smiled. "It is a pity that your efforts were completely futile. Only a bit more and this will be over…for good" he said as he cherished the area of his hand.

"Don´t be so cocky about it, everything has a weak point" Claude said as he released a new group of arrows from his bow.

She was readying her axe too when Byleth charged at the beast. The monster opened its jaws to devour him, but in the last second, he jumped on the back of the beast and from there he used a spell to hit Aelfric, the moment he did so, the beast vanished in dark smoke.

"It didn´t matter how much we tried, the beast was invincible, but you aren´t" Byleth said as he approached Aelfric. "Take care of the rest, quickly! I will take care of him"

…..

"Why are you opposing me? Of all people, you are the one I wished could understand my objectives" Aelfric lamented as he prepared to defend the Chalice.

"Who do you plan to resurrect with the power of the Chalice?" Byleth asked as he prepared his sword.

"I´ve done all of this to bring back Sitri…your mother…the light of my life" Aelfric said with a painful expression on his face.

"Byleth´s mother?" she thought, shocked by the revelation.

"That´s impossible, she died giving me birth 21 years ago. She has been gone for too long"

"The Professor is right, even if the Chalice had hidden powers, it would be impossible to bring back to life a body which had been dead for more than two decades"

"Then how do you explain this" Aelfric asked as he unveiled what had been hiding at the top of the altar. She could see the body of a young woman, which appeared to be sleeping. Her flesh was paler than her own clothes, but there weren´t any signs of deterioration. It was just as if she was deeply asleep.

"She hasn´t changed a bit since the day she died. During 10 years I trusted the official version that said she died giving birth to you and that she was gone for good, but ten years ago I discovered her body in one of the ancient chambers under the monastery. How could her body remain uncorrupted despite all the time that has already passed? Shocked by the revelation, I´ve spent the last decade trying to figure out how to bring her back to life and after years I finally found out about the existence of the Chalice. I thought that would be my opportunity to achieve it"

"Aelfric, I understand that you want to see her alive again, but she is gone. I consider both of you as my own children and I couldn't allow myself to bury her under the ground. That was my fault, but the Chalice won´t bring her back, her soul has already abandoned her body. The Chalice cannot bring back the dead, it can only recover their bodies, but what is the purpose of it if resurrecting means returning to the world of the living as an empty carcass? I beg you to surrender, I wish you no harm"

"You are liar! I don´t know what you did to her, but your legacy of lies won´t continue!" he shouted as he casted a potent meteor spell against them. The impact scorched the terrain in front of them, releasing violent flames. To avoid the flames, she had to jump to one of the sides as Byleth did the same.

"I don´t wish to fight you Aelfric, since you were a friend of my father, but you don´t leave me another choice" Byleth said as he jumped on him at the same time that Aelfric erected a magic barrier of purple flames. Sword and flame met and an explosion engulfed both of the combatants. When the dust disappeared only Byleth appeared to be standing, although he appeared to be injured.

"I made a promise to my father that I would protect all of them. Even if I can´t say that your intentions are evil, there is no turning back. Surrender Aelfric, it is over" Byleth said as he offered him a hand.

"Why don´t you understand? Rhea is lying to you. The death of Sitri, your apparent death in a fire more than twenty years ago…Even if I don´t know everything about it I must keep fighting. I don´t care if it means my own end. If she smiles once again then I will accept the consequences. Wouldn´t you do something like this for your loved ones?"

Byleth hesitated one moment before giving an answer.

"I think that I understand the pain you are feeling, but we can´t change the past, but even if this Chalice could return my parents, the price is too high. As long as I don´t forget about them they won´t die and they will accompany me for the rest of my life. Besides, I have a reason to keep fighting" he said as he looked at his students, his eyes lingering a bit longer on her, a light smile on his face.

"Your path and mine are completely different, but I don´t hold any grudge against you. That smile…I will cherish that memory…but I won´t back down!" he shouted as he suddenly took Sitri´s body and the Chalice and disappeared in a purple cloud.

"He had run away!"

"The monastery had limits to that kind of magic. He is still close. We have to head to the Cathedral; I have a bad feeling about this" Rhea said with sorrowful expression.

"I agree, damn it. I wish Aelfric were a complete asshole, but I can´t avoid feeling pity for him. By the way Yuri…" Balthus said as he approached him and punched him in the face. "This is for being a jerk to us. You should have told us. Aren´t we friends?"

"Sorry, I should have trusted all of you about it, but I wasn´t too thoughtful. It is time to correct this mistake. Professor, everyone I´m counting on all of you. Let´s stop Aelfric before it is too late"

"I agree, we will overcome this together. Let´s end these events for good"

…..

The surroundings of the Cathedral were completely empty, but she could feel a strong aura coming from within the building. Aelfric was kneeled before Sitri´s body at the bottom of the Cathedral, just in front of the altar.

"Aelfric! I beg you for the last time, stop this madness!" Rhea implored.

"Stop it, Aelfric. There is no point on continuing with the ritual. She has been gone for too long"

"I accept all the consequences of my acts. I just want…to see her again" he said as he placed the Chalice on her body. "Sitri, please return" As he placed the Chalice a strange aura started to engulf Sitri´s body. Strange shadows started to appear on the walls, some of them unnaturally alive. She could also hear unknown voices muttering things she couldn't understand.

Suddenly everything stopped as Sitri started to stand up, her eyes completely closed.

"Merciful Sothis" Rhea whispered shocked as she witnessed how Sitri stood up once again.

"I told you I was right. Oh, Sitri, I´ve waited all this time to meet you again. I´m sorry that Jeralt isn´t here, but I could make him return too"

"Aelfric! Leave her now!"

"Why should I? I was right all…" he couldn´t hear anything more as Sitri opened her eyes, but instead of the eyes of her Professor there were just two holes devoid of all life, blood pouring from them.

"This can´t be…What did I do wrong?" Aelfric cried, but it was already too late for him. With a swift movement his head was trapped between Sitri´s hands, his head starting to melt as Sitri fused with Aelfric, his eyes melting as if they were made out of snow.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" Aelfric´s death cry was piercing through her head as he was engulfed in a red mist, when it disappeared, there was nothing left of the Chalice, Aelfric or Sitri. Instead, there was a giant beast in front of them. Red veins covered the winged beast body and a giant skull devoid of life covered its head. When the beast howled as it flipped its wings, a heavy blizzard started to fall outside of the monastery.

"What the hell is this?"

"It is the umbral beast, the punishment for trying to surpass the power of the Goddess. We cannot let this being break free from here or a tragedy will unfold once again. We need to slay it" Rhea said with a saddened expression on her face.

"Lady Rhea" Alois interrupted them as he entered the cathedral. We have repelled the attack to the village, but a heavy blizzard had just started to fall and monsters are starting to appear outside the monastery!"

"If we do nothing, the monastery will be overwhelmed. I will command the troops with Seteth. I am afraid to leave you with such a beast, but the lives of many depend on me now" Rhea said. "I will place a seal to block the exit to this cathedral. I entrust you their lives, Professor. May the Goddess give you strength"

"I will protect them with my own life" Byleth nodded as he unsheathed the Sword of the Creator. The beast had already noticed them and was silently approaching.

"Attack from different directions. We need to overwhelm it!" Byleth shouted as he used the whip of his Sword to attack the beast´s hind legs.

"Said and done" Claude smiled as he shot at the beast as fast as he could.

Receiving attacks from different directions the beast howled, his roar breaking the heavily decorated windows of the Cathedral and letting the blizzard in.

"Stop this madness!" shouted a known voice.

"Aelfric?" Byleth asked shocked when he saw him standing a few meters from the Umbral Beast.

"If you continue attacking your mother will be gone for good. Are you willing to such an atrocity" he said as he casted a fire spell against him.

She was about to assist him when she was almost hit by another fire spell.

"You students should be out of this matter!"

"This can´t be real, there are now two of them!"

Taking advantage of the situation the Umbral Beast released blue flames from its mouth, separating Byleth from the rest of the students. The flames completely encircled Byleth with Aelfric´s clones, making it impossible to break free from the barrier.

"Keep fighting! I will take care of these illusions"

"You have heard him, keep the pressure!" she shouted as she attacked the beast with her axe.

…

"You are just an illusion!" he shouted as he cut through one of the clones.

"I wish I were, but this pain…is too real" one of the Aelfric´s said as he coughed blood. Even though he was sure they were illusions their bodies didn´t disappear.

"They look too real" he thought.

"My son…" The moment he heard those words his blood froze as he turned around.

"Father?" He couldn´t believe his eyes, Jeralt was standing a few meters from him, wearing the very same clothes he was wearing the day he died. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you once again" he said with a faint smile as he approached him.

He was tempted to lower his sword, but his instincts told otherwise as he blocked a fast attack aimed at his heart.

"I didn´t imagine that a day like this would come. Father…even if you aren´t real I wished I couldn´t fight you"

"Me neither, but the reality of this world is not ours to decide" he said with a sad expression on his face as he charged at him.

The attacks of Jeralt were strong and merciless as if he was fighting against the real one…" Was he really just an illusion?" he wondered as he parried another attack aimed at his neck.

"You have really turned into a mighty warrior"

"I learnt from the best" he had said it many times, but this time saying those words was painful.

"I´m glad to hear that" Jeralt said as he canalized all his strength into a brutal blow that would have destroyed any normal sword, but he had the power of the Sword of the Creator on his side. Using its hidden strength, he teared through the armor and flesh effortlessly. Jeralt was spitting blood, trying to get up again as he approached him without success.

"Farewell father" he said as he felt tears forming in his eyes when he received the impact of a spell.

"No son should kill his own father unless he wants to be cursed for the rest of his life. I didn´t die for something like this"

"Not you too" he said as he saw Sitri, approaching him. Unlike the hollowed Sitri, this one had his very own eyes and a sad expression on his face.

"Why do you keep fighting, my dear son? Don´t you understand that the Chalice offers us the opportunity to be a family again?"

"A normal family, think about it" Jeralt said as he slowly stood up.

"Stop messing with my mind!" he shouted as he charged at them.

….

"This monster is too strong. No matter how many times we hit it, it always finds a way to counterattack" she though as she avoided another attack from the beast. Snow was entering the cathedral through the broken windows and she could see her own breath. The blue flames casted by the beast were still surrounding Byleth, blocking any contact with him.

"If we destroy the skull, we might able to weaken it. Focus your attacks on the skull!" she shouted. "Linhardt, warp me to the beast´s face"

As she said so, a few seconds later she was a few meters above the beast, unreleasing the power of her dual crests in a brutal blow to the head.

…..

"When will this pain end?" he wondered as he released his sword from the body of Sitri. He was feeling exhausted, an acute pain piercing his head, but his senses alerted him from an incoming attack. As he avoided the spell, he was shocked to see his new enemy.

"Professor, I really don´t want to fight you. Why do we have to kill each other? Please stop this madness" Dorothea said while crying as she charged another Thoron spell.

"This is impossible, Dorothea is alive, then why is it appearing in front of me? Did something happen while we were out. Am I the one to blame?"

"In Brigid those who we hold dear never really abandon us. The spirits must be trying to communicate with you" Petra said as she tried to stab him from behind.

As he looked at his surroundings, he could see the students he cared so much appearing around him. Lysithea, Caspar, Raphael, Marianne… All of them pure within their heart, yet their faces were looking at him disappointed.

"Look at what you have turned into. Teach, I don´t have any will-ill against you, but I promise I will end it quickly" Claude said as he prepared his bow, refusing to gaze at him.

"Professor, I won´t back down, I hope that you can understand. Even if it´s you I will do everything I can"

"I don´t want to fight all of you…Please stop!" the pain he was feeling inside his head was starting to make him feel dizzy…or was the pain of fighting his dear students?"

"You are too weak, accept what you are…" whispered a voice inside his head. "What am I?" he thought as he avoided another attack.

"A demon…A ghost…A sword" the voice whispered back.

When he opened his eyes again the Sword was even brighter than before as he charged at his students.

…

"We are weakening it!" she shouted as she avoided another attack. The skull was starting to crack, but the Umbral Beast was even more aggressive. Pools of blood and melted snow were all around them.

"I can´t avoid feeling bad about this" Yuri said next to him. "Even if Aelfric used us for his own benefit, I can´t consider his intentions as evil"

"Sometimes the things we hold dear can destroy us. I liked him too, but now the only thing we can do is ending his suffering" Hapi said as she casted another spell.

"The old man was sometimes weird, but this fight…sorry Aelfric" Balthus said as he used his own relic against the beast.

…..

"I´m sorry, I wish I didn´t have to do this" he said as he looked to all the corpses around him. He could hear his own heartbeats in his ears, but it was nothing compared to the pain he was feeling in his heart. But he knew the fight wasn´t completely over.

"My Teacher…." The sound of that voice was sharper than a blade.

"I don´t wish to fight against you, Edelgard" he said as she looked at her. He didn´t know anymore what was real and what wasn´t, but the corpses around him were a silent reminder of the atrocities he had just committed. How could he be alive despite all the things he had just done?

"I wished the next time we were alone you would invite me to dance, but that possibility is already gone" she said with a lonely expression on her face as she prepared her battle axe.

"This can´t be real"

"It is. As real as the snow falling over us" she said as she charged at him.

Sword and axe impacted against each other surrounded by blue flames as the snow silently started to cover the corpses around them. Even though he had the power of a relic on his side she was successfully parrying all of his attacks.

"That´s because you have been my guide all this time" she sadly smiled as if she had read his mind.

The Sword of the Creator, that until now was charged with energy appeared to be devoid of life as they continued to exchange blows. It was a fight he couldn´t avoid anymore, yet that didn´t make it easier.

Taking advantage of one of the attacks from Edelgard he was able to disarm her. Using what remained of his willpower he teared through her flesh as he felt a light pain on his side. He realized he had been stabbed by her, but his armor had been able to deviate most of the damage.

"So this is how it ends…" she whispered as she fell on her knees, her body about to collapse.

"I´m sorry…" he said as he held her body. The pain he was feeling through his entire body was starting to overwhelm him, his sense of reality completely lost. "I just don´t know what is right and what is wrong anymore. Is this just an illusion?"

"Could an illusion do something like this?" she asked as she cherished the area of his cheeks, staining them with her blood, the moment she did so the pain he was feeling started to reach inhumane levels.

"Have I turned into a monster?" he wondered as he looked at the corpses of all of his students. "Am I cursed by everything I have done? Is this the punishment I deserve for having abused the powers of Sothis?" Even though he was surrendered by flames he couldn´t avoid shivering as he witnessed everything he had done. "Her body is still warm…this kind of punishment is worse than death itself" he thought as tears unwillingly started to leave his eyes.

"So you finally understand, the price of true power" said a known voice behind him.

"Sothis, is it really you? I can´t believe what I see anymore"

"You already know the answer to that question…Sometimes the price of knowledge can bring us to our doom" He had never seen her like that, her face filled with compassion and pity.

"So I did kill them all…I must be a monster" he said as he cherished her hair, her face was paler than usual, her blood staining her mouth in a vivid red. "What can I do now? I have no one anymore"

"Even at a time like this, there is always a glimmer of hope. A life for a life…if you really wish to stop this endless suffering you have to offer your own life" she said as she approached him.

….

With a final blow to the skull of the beast it finally collapsed to the ground with an agonizing roar, its body starting to dissipate by a furious wind.

"So it finally has ended" she thought as she caught her breath. They were completely exhausted and parts of the building had been heavily damaged, but everyone was alive.

"I need to go to his side" she thought as she approached the blue flames that were starting to get weaker, the moment she was able to see the other side, she froze.

Byleth was holding her body, his usual neutral expression nowhere to be seen. Around him there were the corpses of the different students, but the most unnerving thing was the shadow that was starting to engulf him.

"What kind of curse is this?" she thought alarmed. Suddenly, her attention was caught by a strange light coming from the body of the fallen beast. "The Chalice is still functioning!" she realized as she rushed to the body of the fallen beast before it was too late.

…

"It will be over in a moment, dear child" whispered a voice next to him as he felt weaker. The world around him was starting to get darker…

"Don´t succumb to the despair, Byleth"

When he opened his eyes, he wasn´t in the cathedral, but in an unknown room with two doors.

"My dear child. You have fought and suffered a lot, but now it´s not the time to give up"

"Mother?" he asked, almost speechless. Her mother was wearing the same clothes that he had seen back in the cathedral, but there was no sorrow in her face, only happiness.

"Thanks Goddess I was able to meet you, at least once, but even now our time is limited. You have to return, lots of people need you now. Even in a time when the world is menaced by darkness you must embrace the light"

"Where am I?"

"You are in the frontier between the world of the living and those who are already gone. I have waited for you all this time, but you still have plenty to do. The more time you spend here the weaker it will be your bond with the world of the living"

"I have committed many atrocities, I don´t even know if I can be considered human anymore"

"We are what we choose to be. The decisions we make are what shape our paths. Your heart isn´t stained in dark, my dear son" Sitri said as she cherished his cheeks, tears leaving her pure face. "The power you have…it comes from me, but you can control it, don´t let it pick your path" as she talked the room where they were started to crumble. "You have to hurry up or you will be trapped here eternally"

"Even though it is the first time we are talking we are already departing" he said as he felt tears leaving his eyes.

"One day, our paths will cross again, but swear to me that you will enjoy a long life before our paths cross again. The time is running out…and don´t worry, your father is also proud of you, he is waiting for me to the other side" She said as she stood up again.

Nodding at her he hesitantly approached the opposite door.

"Byleth"

"Yes, mother?"

"I will never regret having you. Me and your father will always be proud of you, but now you have to follow your own path" she said as tears left her face.

"I love you too" he said as the room where they were started to collapse.

…..

The moment he opened the door all the pain he was feeling returned to him in a sudden, he was feeling like his head was about to explode.

"Byleth, Byleth, please wake up!"

"He has lost too much blood; do you think that…"

"Nonsense! He will recover, right Linhardt?"

"Edelgard…"

When he opened his eyes, he felt a bit dizzy but he could see their faces looking at him with a worried expression.

"Ey Teach, this wasn´t the right time, to take a nap. You have been worrying all of us" Claude said with a worried expression on his face.

"Even if it was for a split of a second, I witnessed what there was to the other side of the flames. I can only shiver to the mere thought of it.

Even though they were looking at him relieved, he wasn´t sure anymore what to believe as he stood up.

"You should take it easy" someone said but he slowly advanced to the center of the cathedral, where the body of the Umbral beast was dissolving. He could see the body of her mother, the Chalice and what remained of Alfreic. Placing his hands of the body he canalized what remained of his energy.

"My Teacher…what are you…" But he wasn´t able to pay attention to the world around him. Setting the body on fire he used the Sword of the Creator to give a fatal blow to the Chalice which shattered in multiple pieces as it was devoured by the flames. "I won´t let this happen anymore" he said as silver snow fell on his head. He then sheathed his sword and silently headed to the entrance of the cathedral.

"Byleth?"

"It doesn´t matter what I say, that´s what everyone wants me to be"

"What do you mean?" she asked when a distant memory came to her mind. "I´ve seen this before, I need to reach for him before he disappears" she thought as he rushed to where he was.

"Let me go!" he ordered; his eyes devoid of life as she reached for his hand.

"I won´t!" she refused, looking at him right into the eye.

"I killed…I killed all of you. My hands are stained by your blood. I don´t even know if I´m human anymore. A demon…a ghost…a sword…that´s all I am"

"They were only illusions. And you are neither of those things, please listen to my words"

"They were too real. I will harm you, I will harm all of you, so please let me go. I don´t want any of you to suffer for my wrongdoings"

"You have saved me more than once. Let me be by your side this time" she said, putting his hands on her chest. "If this heart beats it is thanks to you"

"Edelgard…"

"Byleth, please be by my side. I swear to you that Jeralt´s death won´t be in vain. Those filthy creatures will pay for it with their blood. But for now, stay with me, with all of us"

Byleth´s legs crumbled as he embraced her and buried his face in her hair. She silently embraced him as a whirlwind of silver snow surrounded them.

…..

"The end of Aelfric is truly a tragedy, but it had to be done" Rhea said adopting a praying gesture. "Thanks to all of you, unnecessary sacrifices were avoided, you have my eternal gratitude"

The archbishop had returned a few moments after the umbral beast had been slayed and had silently listened to their explanation as Byleth was attended by Linhardt.

"Even in that case I can´t avoid having a sour taste in my mouth" Yuri said with a saddened expression. "Aelfric´s role didn´t truly suit him and what he did was out of love. It makes it really difficult to hate someone like him"

"Was he thinking the entire time about using us?" Hapi asked.

"I highly doubt it. He said he discovered her body ten years ago, but the project to secure the inhabitants of the Abyss started way before that"

"Then it means that he was doing it in good will!" said a shocked Balthus. "I can´t really despise him after everything he had done for us. Even if he did used us, I will keep the good memories of him"

"I will do the same. When I had nowhere to go, he quickly accepted me and thanks to his hospitality I was able to meet all of you"

"Oh, Constance, that really got me. I guess that I think the same. Even though I´m still cursed I found a place that protected me from the outside world. I really appreciate what he did for me"

"Lady Rhea, now that the mystery surrounding the Chalice and Aelfric is gone, what will happen to the Abyss?"

"You don´t have to worry about it, Yuri. The Church will continue to protect the Abyss unless the inhabitants of the Abyss tell us otherwise" she smiled. "After all your efforts and everything that has occurred, I think this will be a good opportunity for your graduation"

"Graduation? Do you mean that we are free to go?"

"If you wish to do so. It does not mean that you will not be able to return again, in fact I have the hope that you could return, but I cannot order all of you to stay here any longer"

"But to graduate you need to have the authorization of a Professor, right?"

"I agree with Rhea, all of you have endured things that most students wouldn´t handle in an entire lifetime. I must say that I´m proud of all of you" Byleth said, assisted by Linhardt.

"You really think about us as your students, even me?" asked a shocked Yuri.

"I do and I couldn´t be any prouder" Byleth said with a faint smile.

"You are really a badass, Professor. Sorry, I think I´ve got something in my eye" Balthus said, hiding his face.

"I trust your words, don´t betray me like others had done to me"

"I promise I won´t Hapi"

"I have some matters to resolve in the outside world, but if I can learn from someone like you it would be a pleasure to meet once again" Constance laughed.

"I´m looking forward to it"

"You surely are impressive, Professor. I´m glad that I was able to meet someone like you" Yuri said with a genuine smile. "Take care of the Abyss while we are outside, they may look like tough warriors, but sometimes they are crybabies like this one here"

"I´m not crying, I was just cleaning my eyes!"

"Sure, Balthus" he laughed.

When they headed to the main gates of the cathedral the first rays of the sun were starting to appear, cleansing the area of the events of last night.

"Our paths will cross another time, until then stay safe" Yuri said wavering a hand as he headed towards the outside world accompanied by the rest of the Ashen wolves, Constance casting a parasol to avoid the rays of the sun.

"Balthie! If you stop by my brother´s place, don´t forget to bring me some accessories"

"Hilda, you haven´t changed at all" Balthus laughed as he kept walking. "No problem with that, although your brother may offer to bring them himself"

"I can´t believe that so many things had just happened. If I wasn´t here I would have thought this was an elaborated prank or something"

"It really happened, though" she said as she observed how the archbishop was talking with Byleth. She was tempted to approach them, but she didn´t have any particular reason to justify it besides her own curiosity.

"If we can work together like this there won´t be any problems in the future. It appears to be that these events weren´t related to the things that had been happening in the monastery these last months"

"Teach really looked depressed after the flames disappear. Out of curiosity what did you say to him when he was about to leave?"

"N-nothing in particular Claude, you surely appear to enjoy making unnecessary questions" she said as she avoided his gaze.

"Even if we are in the middle of the winter, I guess that spring is blossoming earlier than expected" Claude laughed, looking at her as he observed how the sun started to rise through the clouds.

"What do you mean, Claude?" Dimitri asked, not sure about what they were talking about.

"Nothing important, I´m just a bit poetic this morning, that´s all. My stomach is empty, how about we go to the canteen and then we enjoy a long and deserved rest?"

Hearing him, she couldn´t avoid smiling. "Even at a time like this you barely change, although I must admit that your idea is tempting enough" she said before looking one more time behind her. "I will pay him a visit later" she thought as she followed the two other class leaders.

…..

"My heartfelt thanks for all you have done. If it weren´t for you I can only shiver to the mere thought of what could have happened"

"It was all thanks to my students" he said nodding at her, exhausted for everything that had happened during the last days.

"Of course, I am sincerely thankful for their help too. The cathedral has been partially damaged because of the battle, but I have the hope its scars will eventually disappear as the mist leaves this world when the sun reappears. Poor Aelfric, the pain he must have endured…It is something that I have experienced it myself" she said, her expression saddened as she looked at him again. "The Chalice of the Beginnings has finally been destroyed…It is a pity that a device built on good intentions could do such an amount of damage"

"What was the purpose of it?"

"It was intended to restore the bodies of those who had lost it, but even if the flesh can return, it doesn´t mean that our dear ones can return once again. It was a mistake of the ancient times of the Church, but now everything is in the past now" she smiled to him, as if she was convincing herself about it. "I beg you to rest, the events of the last days must have been too hard. I will accompany you to the infirmary and this time please don´t abandon it" she said as she offered her arm.

"I´m sorry about it…I wasn´t my usual self"

"Times make us change, but sometimes changes can arrive to us in an unexpected manner. I can´t hardly blame you about it. For now, rest, it is the wisest thing to do" Rhea said with a reassuring smile as both of them left the Cathedral, although he was still thinking about Aelfric´s words, "What really happened twenty years ago?" he wondered as he felt the rays of the sun on his exhausted body, the tragedy of man which acted out of love left behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of the scenes was anticipated in a vision (Chapter 20, the end of it). I like doing these little things.
> 
> I have thought for a long time about how to make an indirect confession (告白, kokuhaku) and I think this one was subtle enough in a moment were Edelgard´s defenses were low (justified, though).
> 
> The Ashen Wolves aren´t gone for good. Expect more from them as the story develops.


	53. Guardian Moon

The air was filled by ashes and the scent of burnt bodies, even the sky above them was of a crimson color as they approached the hive of their sworn enemy.

"It has been 7 harsh years, but the time to end the monstrosity that has been consuming this world starts now" he thought as his troops approached the esplanade before the cave where the remaining enemy armies remained.

"My general, we will need a few moments before we can launch the next pillar of light" said one of his bodyguards.

"Good, this will be the time when we will use all the strength of humanity. The sacred land of Fódlan won´t face such menace, anymore" He thought as he readied his own sword, which released purple sparks as he readied it. After the fall of the City of Sunlight there had been civil wars all across the land, but no one would have thought that those creatures would start attacking them like a swarm. During all these years they had killed millions of them, yet they still had the number advantage over them. All over the world the land had been scorched by their own weaponry and devoured by the black sea. Their prophets had told them that the advent of the black calamity was over them and even he had to admit that the menace to their race was real after countless battles against them. However, they had been slowly retaking lands as they advanced to their garrison where decades ago a meteor had impacted.

"So, we have finally have arrived to the gates of hell itself" he said as he looked at the mountain before them. He could see countless caves, but their objective was the biggest one.

"Thanks to your leadership we are here" said with a shy smile his young squire named Solon. Even though he wasn´t the strongest combatant, his magic talent and knowledge of technology had allowed them to defeat countless beasts.

"The ancient gods are on our side. Today is the day we send to the abyss the doom of men!" he shouted to their troops. "Seven years had already passed since true dark engulfed the capital of humankind and since them we have been facing countless demons capable of assimilating human forms, but this is the day when we will rip their wings off and we will fester on their corpses as repayment for all the suffering that they have caused to this planet. Destroy the usurpers and free the Earth of their poison!" he shouted as he showed to all of them his sword, crafted from one of the fallen beasts' horns, a true union between technology and the unknown. Hearing their troops roaring his name, made him smile. "Comrades, survive and we will see each other at the celebration!" he then looked at his squire. "Battle formations, now!"

"Prepare battle formations!"

The air was suddenly filled by the sound of thousands of horns as their troops prepared their weapons. They were the elite of humankind. The most capable fighters of all around the world, their disputes set apart until they defeated the true menace of humankind. As he thought about it, an emerald light came from the caves. Their enemy was preparing for battle too as the first beasts started to leave their last fortress.

"Shoot them down!" he ordered as a first wave of missiles impacted against the first round of enemies. Some of them fell to the ground and some others directly exploded, their green blood expanding through the air. In front of them a horde of beasts was already rushing to their position. As he readied his sword, he looked at his squire, which was violently trembling.

"If you want to leave, you are free to do so"

"Never! I´m in the place where I want to be, I have nowhere to go too…" Solon said as he prepared to attack too.

The first of the beasts was opening its jaws to shallow them, but he avoided it in the last moment as he cut through flesh and bone. He didn´t have time to finish him off as one of the creatures attacked him from behind. Its attacker had chosen to fight him mimicking a human body, green eyes and green hair, which infuriated him greatly. The attacks of the beast were powerful, but its strength couldn´t compare to his fury. Parrying one of its attacks he took the chance to slice one of its arms off and as the beast started to agonize, he threw it to the ground.

"Die scum" he said as he crushed its skull and brain with his iron boot. He didn´t have too much time to look at its corpse before the next combatant arrive.

….

Hours had passed since the beginning of the battle and corpses of enemies and allies were scattered around them. Even though they have used one pillar of light after another on its hive, beasts were still leaving the area, its corpses scattered around them.

"Master Thales, there are too many of them, we are getting surrounded" Solon said as he casted a potent spell against one of the beasts, making it explode from the inside.

It was true, unknowingly, the unholy beasts were starting to surround them. If the battle continued like that, they would be annihilated by them. "No, this isn´t going to be my final battle, the future of humankind depends on me" he thought as he killed another winged beast, but the situation was getting worse. If this was going to be their end, he had to make sure to end definitely the threat that was lingering on the entire world to allow humanity the opportunity to retake what they have lost.

"Solon, order to launch Eschaton" he said as he took an opening to approach him.

"Eschaton? It is too powerful it could mean the annihilation of…" he was saying, but he was interrupted as he slapped him.

"If we do nothing, this world is doomed, we are the shield of humanity and this shield is starting to crack. The survivors will understand and forgive us. It is doing it or accepting our fate" he urged him as a monster landed a few meters from them and roared at them. "Give the command, now!" he shouted as he rushed to his new combatant, before they intercepted Solon.

The beast tried to kill him with one of its beams, but he was quickly approaching him. Even though he had sustained several burns across his whole body, his sword arm was still capable of crushing them.

"Why do you resist?" roared the beast as it tried to crush him with its body.

"This isn´t your world, you are trying to usurp it!"

"Your kind is the responsible of its suffering because of the javelins of light!"

"How presumptuous from the creatures responsible of the black waves" he said as he avoided another attack, counterattacking with the brilliant light of his sword. "Only the creatures of darkness fear the light and this will be the place where you will suffer its judgement!"

The beast was about to attack with another beam when a red star appeared in the sky, the moment it appeared on the sky the beast immediately paralyzed. With a roar the beast flew and headed to the crimson star, accompanied by the rest of them. His breath stopped when he saw the number of beasts that were still inside the mountain and how all of them headed to face the new menace.

As the seconds passed, his heart started to beat faster. He felt a bit of regret for sentencing all of his forces to a certain death, but if they could annihilate their enemy with it, then it was worth it. The red star was approaching increasingly faster. The beasts were using all their attacks against it, but their ultimate weapon was made to resist all kind of damage. And then suddenly the sky turned completely red. The cloud of enemies surrounding the red star disintegrated or fell to the ground as the moths that come too close to the light. The light was so brilliant that it was painful to see as it slowly came closer and closer. The hive of their enemy was releasing all their forces but no matter what they did they couldn´t defeat the undying light above them.

"The fury of the Gods is unstoppable" he thought when the ground around him violently trembled, making him fall. When he got up again, he could see how the hive in front of him collapsed, releasing an intense green light which flew directly into the crimson light.

"A fell star raising to the heavens once again" he murmured as green clashed with red, originating a cataclysmic explosion which sent him to the ground once again, before everything around him grew black…

When he opened his eyes, he found himself covered in mist. At first, he was confused until the pain of his body made him come back to his senses.

"A dream from the past, when humankind was still at its apex. We have lost so much since then" he thought. But they weren´t the only ones that were diminished since then. Only shards remained of the Fell star, but they couldn´t allow it to return once again. "Perhaps the answer lies there" he thought before his mind grew dizzier as he closed his eyes once again.

**1/5 Guardian Moon**

"How much time are you planning to spend sleeping? You idiot"

When he opened his eyes, he was in front of the throne room and above him, he could see Sothis, looking at him extremely angry.

"Sothis, long time no see you"

"That´s the only thing you can say? If we weren´t able to talk it´s all your fault. The moment you abused the divine pulses you isolated me from you, no matter how many times I shouted you weren´t unable to hear my voice. I told you and you dared to defy me"

"My father…"

"Even if he was your father you have to know your limits! Don´t you understand? You could have died there. Sometimes we can´t change the outcome of our future. Sometimes we must endure it because there is no other way left"

"I´m sorry" he knew that he had acted emotionally back them, but he knew that he had abused her trust. "I promise you that I won´t abuse the divine pulses anymore"

"Words can change as fast as the wind. Promise that even if that means the death of one of your students you won´t abuse its power"

Saying the following words proved to be difficult. "I promise, but before it I will do everything I can to avoid such outcome"

"You really are fond of them, don´t you?" Sothis sighed. "I can´t really blame you since they are so cute. Well, friends are supposed to argue from time to time, right? You suffered and I suffered, but there is no point about having resentment about it"

"I´m glad to see you too, Sothis" he smiled.

"You should open your eyes again. I´m sure that there are people worried about your wellbeing"

…

When he opened his eyes, he needed a bit of time before its eyes got used to the clarity.

"So you are finally awaked" greeted him a familiar voice. When his eyes got used to the light, he could see Edelgard sitting next to him, a gentle smile on her voice. He was about to say something when he felt surrounded by two arms, a soft cushion covering his face.

"It´s been a long time since we last met, although I´m glad that Eddie and Linhardt could find you"

"Dorothea, don´t you consider what you are doing highly inappropriate?" asked Edelgard as her face grew redder.

"It´s just normal, it´s been a while since we last met, or perhaps are you jealous?" Dorothea giggled as she released him from her embrace.

"How could I be?" she said, although she took a quick glimpse to Dorothea´s and her own before sighing. "As you can see everyone was worried about you, my Teacher"

"Not me, I was sure that you would get through everything, it would be too troublesome if you didn´t" Linhardt yawned. "I really envy you, Professor. You have spent all these days sleeping while I had to stand this guy over here"

"I have a name, you know!" Caspar shouted. "I´ve heard that you had an incredible battle down there. It´s a pity that I wasn´t invited there. I´ve heard from Linhardt that there was a guy that punched as hard as me!"

"I wasn´t invited either, I just was forced by her" Linhardt said looking at Edelgard. "At least I got a greater insight of the monastery so I guess that I can´t complain about it"

"I´ve heard that there was a monster in the cathedral. Definitely, there isn´t a safe place except for my room. I beg you Professor to leave me at my room until I graduate"

"Come on, Bernie, that would be such a waste of someone as cute as you" Dorothea smiled as Bernadetta shily smiled.

"The Professor is strong so I wasn´t afraid at all. Learning from a warrior like you is the best" Petra smiled.

"Obviously I was worried too. I wish I could have lent a hand, but unfortunately everything happened too fast. However, there was no day I wasn´t thinking about you, Professor" Ferdinand said with a gentle smile on his face.

"I missed that guy too" Sothis whispered, making him smile.

"What a heartwarming scene. It seems that you have been busy lately. How unexpected" a known voice chuckled next to the entrance. It was Hubert, who was still wearing his riding boots.

"He has been running some errands for me at the Empire" Edelgard said, quickly understanding the situation.

"I´m glad to see you too, Hubert" He nodded at him.

"I guess that with everyone reunited it is an opportunity to celebrate!"

"I pass"

"Come on, Linhardt!"

"Oh, it seems that Teach is already awaked, come in! Morning Teach, I brought you something to eat" Claude greeted him as he brought him a few pieces of fruits. He was accompanied by the rest of the Golden Deer students, although Leonie avoided to look at him, as she approached to one of the windows.

"I would have brought you some meat, but Claude insisted on bringing this. You won´t be getting stronger like that" Raphael laughed.

"Don´t worry, Raphael, I appreciate it"

"Thank Goddess for your protection" Marianne whispered.

"I´ve seen the marks of your battle at the cathedral. That must have been an impressive show of force but if you don´t recover your energy you won´t be able to training us again so I made this" Lysithea said as she offered him a bag full of sweets.

"Thank you, Lysithea you are really skillful and your sweets taste delicious"

"That´s because I always do my best" Lysithea proudly smiled. "Ignatz, you need to tie your shoes. I will help you so stay still"

"I can do it on my own" the shy Ignatz muttered, but he couldn´t do anything about it.

"You made me work too much there, Professor, you should treat me more carefully. I´m a frail flower after all"

"When I heard about your disappearance, I searched for you through the entire monastery. Your conversational skills during teatimes had increased dramatically. I don´t wish to brag about it, but…"

"Lorenz, let him rest or you are going to kill him of boredom" Claude laughed.

"Professor! You are finally awaked" Dimitri said as he entered the room, behind him started to enter the Blue Lions students too.

"And here I thought we would have some peace. You are too popular for your own good, my Teacher" Edelgard sighed.

"It is only natural that we worry about him. I told them about our fights in the Abyss"

"Such number of powerful enemies, it is a pity that everything has ended"

"Felix, you surely only think about battling enemies, right? I´m also a warrior, although of a different battlefield"

"Womanizer…"

"That´s harsh"

"He is right, though"

"Don´t side with him, Ingrid! We are all friends, right? Besides, we aren´t here to talk this kind of things"

"As you can see, some things don´t change at all, Professor" Dimitri smiled as he observed the chatting of his students.

"Accept my gratitude for protecting your Highness" Dedue said slightly bowing before him.

"You know that you can just call me Dimitri" he sighed.

"Mercie and I prepared a drink that will certainly booster your recovery. You must try it!" Annette said offering him a drink of a navy-blue color.

Surrounding by all of them he couldn´t avoid feeling extremely happy.

"Thank you, all of you, because of you I´m able to be myself"

"What is this fuss?" Seteth said appearing in front of the room. "Lady Rhea has been clear that visits should be limited in numbers yet everyone is here"

"We kind of found the gate opened, Sir" Claude said.

"That isn´t a proper excuse" Seteth sighed. "I´m glad to see you awaked, Professor, but now it isn´t the time to overspend your energy. You should rest again, before…."

"BYLETHHHH!"

Before he could do anything about it, he was being surrounded by strong arms.

"I´m glad to see you again. After all that has happened. I promise I won´t fail you! From now on you can count on me for everything"

"Alois, if you keep embracing him like that you are going to snap his neck. You are knight of Seiros, behave like one" Seteth sighed.

"What are you saying, dear brother? You were worried about his wellbeing too, right?"

"Flayn! Since when you have been here? And you shouldn´t say such things aloud. He is our benefactor after all, so it was only natural that I felt worried about his wellbeing" he said a bit flustered. "Anyway, you should all evacuate this room, immediately. Don´t worry, your Professor will shortly teach all of you once again"

**1/7**

"Please mighty creator, let our loyal friend met the light once again besides you" The archbishop said as her voice was accompanied by the chorus of the Church. The stained-glass windows had been quickly replaced, although the floor and some of the columns were a silent witness of what had happened there. Her Professor was next to the likes of Seteth in a place of high honor. Although Jeralt has already been buried, the Archbishop had insisted in having a mass in his honor.

"Feeling pain is only natural in the world we live in, but the Goddess is fair and judges us fairly. Jeralt served the Church with high loyalty and his legacy will remain ad eternum"

"In a place ruled with fairness there shouldn´t be a Church like this" she silently thought as she recited the prayers, the ones she had learnt what appeared to be a lifetime ago. Looking at her surroundings it was easy to realize who were sincerely religious and those who weren´t. Compared to the likes of Marianne and Mercedes she could see people like Lorenz or Sylvain. "Perhaps I´m similar to them, pretending to be something I´m not" she thought, although there was a time she firmly believed in the Goddess. However those times died along with her innocence the moment she was experimented on her flesh and no one came to her aid.

"In times of pain and sorrow allow us to bath in your love, merciful Goddess, creator of all things"

From the distance she wasn´t able to see Byleth´s face, but she was relieved to see him better since the day he opened his eyes again. She hadn´t heard about them since the events at the old chapel, but she was sure that it was a matter of time they would strike again.

"You can go in peace under the Goddess protection" Rhea finally said as the mass finally ended. The moment it ended Hubert silently approached her and gave her a written message. "It seems that the time for vengeance will be earlier than expected, so they want to meet now, uh?" she thought as she left the cathedral behind her.

….

After the mass had ended, he headed to his father´s room. He didn´t have any particular reason, he just wanted to be alone for a bit. As he entered the room, he couldn´t avoid feeling melancholy as he took a look to the armor and shields of the walls.

"It´s only natural to feel sad about it" Sothis said as she observed the room as well. His father´s former room appeared to haven´t been used for days, a small layer of dust already on his desk. As he cleaned its surface his attention was caught by a small book, which appeared to be old. When he looked to the letters written on it, he realized it was his father´s diary.

"How about you give it a look? I have the feeling that he wouldn´t mind. You are his son, after all" Sothis asked as she looked at the cover.

"I can´t believe she is gone. Rhea has told me that she begged her to save the child even if that meant her own death. The child really has her eyes, but he doesn´t smile. Rhea says that I shouldn´t worry, but since when it is normal for a child to be so silent. I don´t know what to do…"

"The baby is still heavily protected, but I was able to sneak into his room. He breaths normally and is alive and I can feel his pulse, yet I can´t hear his heartbeat. I´ve never heard about something like this. What has happened to my child? No matter how many questions I have in my head I can´t get a proper answer"

"I´ve made the decision to leave this place. Despite all these years I find myself now distrusting Rhea. Her, who she was so close to me. The room of my son is heavily guarded. Something must be done…"

"Using last night fire, I´ve decided to fake my own son´s death. Rhea isn´t her usual self. She is even scary, but there is no turning back. I´ve decided to leave this place and return to my old mercenary days. I hope my son gets better as time passes…"

As he finished reading his father´s diary entries, he couldn´t avoid feeling shocked by the revelations. "Am I really human?" he wondered as he touched his chest. "What happened to me twenty-one years ago and why were they keeping a close watch on me?" He had many questions, but he knew that asking them directly wouldn´t grant him any answers, at least according to what his father had said.

"So this is what really happened to you…I wonder if that´s the reason why our fates see intertwined" As Sothis was talking a small ring fell from a hidden cover of the diary. Picking it up her realized it was the ring his father had used to marry her mother.

"How about you keep it? Perhaps one day you will have the opportunity to use it…Someone is coming!"

He had just hidden the ring in his pocket when the door opened again. It was Seteth.

"I´ve had the feeling you were here. I´m sorry for your loss, but I´m relieved to see you standing on your own" Seteth´s tone was the same, but his expression was more sympathetic than usual. "Losing our dear ones is painful. The pain will always remain with you, but that doesn´t mean that continuing living is not worth it. Jeralt´s possessions are yours now. I just came to this place to tell you so" he said as he took a quick glimpse to the diary on the desk.

"Thank you, I will be leaving now" he said as he excused himself and left the room, although he felt Seteth´s eyes from behind. As he decided to head to the surroundings of the monastery, he didn´t notice a particular green-eyed student, hiding behind one of the armors of the aisle.

…

The sky was already turning a crimson red, when he spotted Dimitri, hiding behind a group of bushes.

"Dimitri, what are you…" but he was interrupted by a quick look of him as he silently told him to approach. As he took a place next to him, he was shocked to see what he was observing.

…

"Why isn´t him here?" she asked with a mechanical voice.

"Master Thales has more important duties to attend"

"Uh? So he must really be agonizing" she thought. Even though all the pain they had caused she was at least relieved to know that he was paying the price. "Hopefully he will die a painfully death" she thought. "What a pity, why are you still here, despite the crimes you have committed?" she asked.

"Crimes? Your hands are as red as ours. You will act when we tell you to do so, until then…"

"Solon! Watch out!" Monica cried when a lance came from one of the bushes. Solon was able to avoid it by the skin of his teeth, when she looked at their attackers, she was shocked to see not only Dimitri, but also Byleth.

"Don´t dare to escape!" Dimitri shouted as he approached, but all of them were getting covered in purple mist.

…

"Curse them, they escaped" Dimitri furiously said as he looked at his surroundings.

"Solon, Monica and the Flame Emperor. What are they up to?" he wondered as he felt fury traverse through his veins. They needed to catch them, but they were too slow.

"We will find them, Dimitri, I promise" he said, but Dimitri seemed to be focused on something else entirely as he toyed with a dagger between his hands. "Has something happened?"

"Oh, sorry Professor, not really, I was just thinking to myself" he said as he put the dagger to one of the sides of his armor. "I will be alert from now on, in case I see something I will immediately tell you. The fact that they were so close is unnerving to me"

"You are right, we must keep a close watch from now on. This situation is far from over"

…..

She finally caught her breath when she entered her room. "That was too close" she thought. Being caught off guard she had lost her dagger, but there wasn´t time to lament over it now. "They are definitely up to something now, if we could get rid of them soon … the problem is where and when they plan to make a move" she wondered as she checked a map of the surroundings of the monastery.


	54. The pieces are moving

**1/10 Guardian Moon**

"What does it mean?" he wondered as he took a closer look to the dagger he was holding in his hands. Despite all the years that had passed he was certain it was the one, although he couldn´t be completely sure since it wasn´t an extremely unique dagger.

"But if it is?" whispered a voice in his head.

"In that case I will crush her skull with my own hands. The debt with the dead must be paid. No innocent would work with them" he said, clenching his fists around the hilt of the dagger. "But it wouldn´t be justice if I act without enough evidence, I need more time…more time to understand"

"Never forget what happened to us"

"Don´t worry, Father. I remember it every single day. It is the first thing I remember when I open my eyes and the last one before I go to bed. I assure you that…" but his conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in"

It was Dedue, his face looking at him worried.

"Your Highness, you should take some rest. You haven´t get enough rest for days"

"Apologies, Dedue. I was just overthinking an unimportant matter" he said with a faint smile. "And I told you to address me by using my name"

"Apologies, your…Dimitri"

"That is better, do you have something to discuss with me?"

"It is about Duscur, my contacts have told me that Kingdom troops are preparing an onslaught against them because of the increasing resistance there"

"Such movement is simply a provocation"

"I´m afraid that the regent is behind it, pressured by some of the nobles of the court"

"He really wants me to have a difficult time when I succeed him" he sighed. "However, we shouldn´t leave your people alone on this matter. How many weeks left we have before the attack begins?"

"As far as I know operations will start from next month"

"In that case I can ask for reinforcements here in the monastery. Perhaps the Professor will accept to help us"

"I´m sure about it too" Dedue nodded with the lightest smile before returning to his usual stone face. "I will train even harder to not disappoint you, Dimitri"

"I will do the same, it is my duty after all" he said as Dedue silently left his room.

"A ruler should give his life for his people. I´m the shield of Faerghus values. I must make sure to protect them" he thought as he looked through the window to a starless sky, the clouds hiding the stars from his sight.

…..

"This is a story more interesting than I expected" he said as he put aside Jeralt´s diary as he yawned. He had to admit that his room was a completely mess, all kind of books scattered around the floor. He had been reading the diary for days, making sure to return it at dawn each day to avoid raising suspicions. At first, he had thought he wouldn´t find any interesting information, but the more he read the surer he was about having found a gold mine of information.

"So Teach was born here, but the thing I don´t get is Rhea. If this happened at least twenty years ago and she was already the archbishop…Why is she so young?" he wondered. Green haired people wasn´t that strange in other parts of Fódlan, Linhardt an example of it, but Rhea appeared to be in her late twenties. According to this she would be a child when everything happened, but that sounded ridiculous. After researching the library for months, he had a fair share of information about the history of Fódlan. He knew that magic could be used to mitigate the pass of time, but that was easily detected by magic devices and the one he had been keeping in his pocket hasn´t been sending him any signals when he had been close to her.

"Perhaps it is broken" he thought as he touched the elemental device. He only had basic knowledge of magic, but this device was from the warehouses of the Church so it should do the trick. "Anyway, this is too fishy" he thought. A Professor without a heartbeat, an archbishop that didn´t appear to grow older and there was also the Sword of the Creator.

"If legends are true, when the true power of the Sword of the Creator is unleashed it could destroy entire mountains. The Sword currently lacks a Crest stone so it could be that it isn´t completed yet. If even in that situation is so powerful, I can´t even imagine what it could do when its true power awakens"

He had always been distrustful of such tales, but the last weeks had convinced him that sometimes there are some things in the world that can´t only by explained by cold logic. "If a device like the Chalice existed, it could mean that similar items are guarded by the monastery, waiting to be used once again. Even if I can´t use the Sword of the Creator that would be of a huge help for my own plans, but I haven´t found yet the secret chamber hiding under the monastery". According to the information he had been gathering in his unauthorized search for the truth, there was supposed to be a hidden room within the deeps of the monastery. At first, he thought that the Abyss was that area, but it appeared to be something even more hidden. It didn´t surprise him, though. The Church was filled with secrets that would cost him a lifetime to discover and he didn´t have that much time.

The hoot of an owl made him look toward the window. Even though his room was warm enough the wind was freezing outside. "I think I should get some rest, but before I go to bed, I need to return to that room again" he said to himself as he silently left his room and headed towards Byleth´s father´s room.

…

When she opened her eyes, the sky was still of a deep navy blue, the stars of the sky clearly visible. These last days she had been getting up earlier than expected, her mind busy with all kind of planning of the events there were about to happen.

"A month and the end of the beginning will start" she thought. With Arundel nowhere to be seen, the last part of their plans was almost completed. However, she needed to be careful for the time being.

With her mind completely awakened, she didn´t feel like going to bed again so she decided to go for a walk. The last days had been warmer, although it was clear than winter was far from gone. "Perhaps spring will come earlier this year" she thought as she walked through the empty aisles of the monastery. It was strange to be walking through the aisles where in a short time the clashes of swords would be heard. "Most people won´t understand, but this is something that must be done, even if in the process I have to lose everything" she said to herself as a kind wind slightly moved her hair. Unknowingly her eyes lingered on Byleth´s room, which was a mere few meters from her. As she did so, the events that had happened during the last few months came to her mind, making her heart beat a bit faster. It was quite ironic that she would find love in the place that aimed to destroy, but there was also fear within her.

"If my words could move him…" but her hopes had greatly vanished since the events of Remire and the death of Jeralt, but even now she still had a glimmer of hope. "I must have turned into a naïve person, regarding this matter" she sighed.

"Edelgard, what are you doing here? Are you having problems to sleep?" asked a voice behind her. As she turned around, she could see him, carrying a bucket and a fish rod.

"I woke up earlier than expected, but don´t worry I didn´t have any strange dreams tonight. It seems that you were busy as usual, my Teacher"

"It´s been a while since the last time I went fishing, it helps me to keep my mind busy. Are you taking a walk? If you want I can accompany you"

"It would be a pleasure. I will wait for you then" she nodded as he headed to his room with the bucket and the fishing rod. In no time he returned, offering his arm which she quickly accepted.

They walked together in silent through the gardens of the monastery, but it wasn´t an uncomfortable silent. It had been a while since the last time they were both of them alone and she didn´t want to spoil the moment.

"A lot of things had passed during the last few weeks" he finally said, although his eyes were focused on the path they were following.

"You are right. To be honest with you I didn´t expect most of what had just happened. The fact that we know so little about our surroundings is so unnerving…but I´m glad we could overcome it together"

"I´m sorry I wasn´t myself for a while, the events overwhelmed me"

"That kind of illusions would have overwhelmed anyone, don´t blame yourself by it" she said as she came a bit closer to him.

"I really thought I killed you" he said as a shadow passed through his face. "Even if it was an illusion it felt too real. I don´t want to experience something like that anymore"

Hearing his words, her heart started to beat faster. "I feel honored by your words, my Teacher. The fact that you worry so much about me, to be fair both of us have changed a lot for the last few months. You barely expressed yourself…"

"And you were overly cautious about everything" he smiled

"Is it a problem to want to have everything under control?" she smiled back.

"It isn´t. I must thank you for what you did in the cathedral. Your words reached for me and helped me overcome the undying pain I was feeling within me. I owe you one"

"You owe me nothing, you saved me first, remember? When the bandits came to attack us, you didn´t hesitate to help me. You could say we are even"

"Edelgard…" Byleth said with a serious expression as he suddenly stopped walking.

"Yes?" she wasn´t sure why, but her heart was beating even faster. When they were walking it was easy to keep a close distance, but standing still was a different matter.

"I want to tell you something important, I´ve been wondering if it was ok to tell you, but there is no point on hiding it anymore"

"Those words, could it be?" she thought as she felt a strange dizziness in her head. "I´ve been keeping something hidden from you for a long time too, my Teacher". She was talking without thinking, she was losing control but she could do nothing about it.

"I´ve discovered that this monastery was my real birthplace. I´ve read my father´s diary and I have found out that I lacked normal emotions since my birth"

"Oh" she didn´t expect to hear that from him. It was something interesting to hear, but she couldn´t avoid feeling disappointed. "Why I lose control so easily? I was about to say something extremely embarrassing!" she thought. "Your father´s diary?"

"Yes, my father decided to run away with me from the monastery using a fire that happened more than twenty years ago. He didn´t know why, but I didn´t cry once and he suspected that there was something odd with my body. Perhaps it is true that I´m strange and everything is related to what happened when I was born. I´ve been thinking about it for a while and that´s what I can think of, did something similar happen to you?"

"The changes on my body only happened a few years ago and they are clearly visible. This hair that you see here was once of a different color" she said showing to him her own hair. "However, I wasn´t born like that from the beginning. What did your father find strange about your body?"

"The fact that I lack a heartbeat" The moment he said those words she looked at him in disbelief. "If you don´t believe me you can see it yourself" he said as he embraced her.

"B-Byleth I wasn´t doubting…" but her words suddenly stopped as she heard nothing. Putting her ear, the closest she could she waited to hear his heartbeats, but nothing happened. It was difficult to believe but he really lacked a heartbeat.

"Even though I lack a heartbeat I have a pulse" checking the pulse on his wrist she could feel it yet she could feel nothing when she placed her ear on his chest.

"I´ve never heard of something like this. Now I´m certain that they have done something to your body and the scars on your chest are what remains of what happened to you, but for what purpose?"

"I don´t really now, this is everything I know, the purpose of the marks within my body remains in the shadows. That made me wonder if I´m human or not"

"Don´t say something like that. You are human like me, even if both of us had to endure things that the rest of people wouldn´t suffer in a lifetime". It was clear to her that the Church was behind the experiments on him, but their purpose was still unclear to her. Were they preparing an ultimate weapon? In that case were they aware of the existence of the other group or they just suspected they were still lingering in the shadows? "Thank you for telling me, this was highly unexpected, but I´m really thankful you told me"

"By the way, what did you want to tell me?"

"Oh, that was nothing important, really. I just wanted to admit to you if I´m closer to the rest of the students is partially thanks to your guiding" she lied as she felt her face getting hot.

"I see" he said, although his eyes kept piercing hers. "In no time dawn will come. If I know anything more, I will shortly tell you"

"Thank you for trusting me" she smiled. "I will see you later" she said as she waved a hand to him. As she headed to her room, she couldn´t avoid thinking about what she had just heard. Both of them were changed yet the process appeared to be different. "Is that the reason why he is able to wield a crestless Sword of the Creator?" She had many unanswered questions, but she had the feeling that some questions were better left unanswered. "What has happened to you, my Teacher and what are the plans of the archbishop regarding you?" She had the feeling that depending of the answer to that question their paths would greatly change.

**1/11**

"Thank you for having some time to spare with me? I deeply appreciate it"

"I have no problem, it is your birthday, after all" he said as he offered her a cup of tea. The archbishop appeared to have a relaxed expression on her face as she accepted it.

"Being the archbishop takes most of my time, the chains of my duty are heavy, but that does not mean that I cannot appreciate a little recess like this"

"How did you end up being the archbishop? You are so young" he said as he sipped his own.

"You shouldn´t ask a lady about their age" she said with a light smile. "I entered the Church since I was very young and I was already a high ranked priestess when the Goddess´s revelation was made clear upon me"

"I don´t remember doing something like that, I must be useless as a God" Sothis yawned inside his head.

"Did the Goddess communicate with you directly?"

"Unfortunately, not, but the Church is able to interpret her will analyzing the omens she sends to us mortals. The Goddess´s will is every lifeform since all of us had been created by her"

"Does it mean that I created roaches? So disgusting"

It was difficult to keep a neutral face with Sothis´s words, but he tried his best.

"I must apologize for not knowing so much about the Church. When I was searching for more information, I was told that unfortunately a fire years ago destroyed valuable documents"

The moment he said those words, Rhea´s face darkened for a moment, although in a spit of a second her face returned to her usual self.

"It was an unfortunate tragedy, but must of the knowledge is stored inside our heads and the copyists had been working for years to avoid losing that knowledge for the coming generations. I told you before that the Goddess sends to us omens of her will. Do you think that she has been acting on you?"

"Don´t say to her that I´m inside your head I don´t have a good feeling about it" warned him Sothis.

"Perhaps, I don´t know if some things happen by chance or not"

"I am confident that the Goddess´s will is strong on you. The moment you wielded for the first time the Sword of the Creator, I realized that the Goddess´s desire was that you fought in her name against the enemies of the faith. Only light can pierce through the shadows of those who defy our mighty Lord. You have already seen it, our enemies are trying to attack us from the shadows, the Goddess is on our side and they fear us because of that. That is why I have entrusted you the Sword" she said as she looked at the Sword of the Creator hanging from his belt.

"She really seems interested in that you use that Sword, but there was another guy that wielded it once, right?"

"How about Nemesis? He was also once the wielder of the Sword" As he said those words, Rhea´s face darkened again, before she showed him a charming smile.

"The omens of the Goddess are never wrong, but the flesh is weak. Nemesis was once a warrior of great might and earned the favor of the Goddess, but his heart grew dark and in no time, he tried to usurp the rule of the Goddess. However, another mighty warrior rose against the evil and wielding her sword she battled against countless enemies, but no matter the obstacles her faith in the Goddess was strong and she overcame them. That´s why Saint Seiros is also known as the Guardian and this month has her name in her honor. She is the Guardian of the Goddess and the faith until she returns to this world once again" she said. She then took a long sip of her tea before smiling at him. "As you can see, I am quite fond of Saint Seiros. Saint Seiros day and my birthday are the same so you could say that my bonds with Saint Seiros had been strong since my birth" she smiled.

"If I truly was that powerful Saint Seiros would be embarrassed of me right now"

"I see" he simply said as he sipped his own cup of tea.

"Apologies for making such a deep explanation. Perhaps shall we talk about another topic?"

"How did you meet my father?"

"I am glad to hear that question from you. The Church forces were ambushed by a group of bandits and the only forces nearby were your father´s mercenaries. He personally protected me and even though he sustained heavy injuries he overcame them. Back at that day I was the leader of the Knights of Seiros and offered him a position within our ranks. In no time he proved to be a capable leader and he eventually succeeded me as the leader of the knights. For me you are the son of my benefactor" she smiled as she slightly touched his hand. "I know that you have heard it many times, but I am sorry for your loss. What you must have endured…it is similar to what I have suffered" she looked to her surroundings before looking at him again. "May I ask if you are willing to stay at this monastery for the time being? In a couple of months, a year will already have passed since the day the Goddess´s will make our paths reunite again"

"I must admit that I will miss my students"

"A particular someone more than the rest, though" Sothis teased him inside his head.

"I will pray to the Goddess to make sure the bonds with your students remain strong. I am sure they share the same feeling than you. I am confident that from now on you will have plenty of opportunity to strengthen your bonds with all of them. This monastery reunites all of Fódlan to keep the land at peace, the fact that most of them are getting along it is a proof of its success"

"Not all of them, though. If some of them are able to annoy the Goddess, the world might be at peril once again" Hearing her he couldn´t about coughing the content of her tea cup.

"Are you ok, Professor?"

"Sorry, I was about to speak while I was drinking" he said trying to ignore the laugh of Sothis.

"I wouldn´t like to lose someone like you to such an enemy" she smiled. "I guess that our time together has come to an end. I must reassume my duties once again. My heartfelt thanks for this little moment of tranquility"

"The pleasure was mine" he nodded at her as she left the room.

…

"So something really happened back then" he thought as he read Jeralt´s diary. He knew what he was doing was morally questionable, but he had a feeling he needed to check the content of the diary.

And the words written there were making him shiver.

"The current Professor was born here more than twenty years ago, yet this information has been kept from me all this time. He felt disappointed by her lack of trust, but what was really unnerving him was the fact that there was something strange with the Professor.

"So I wasn´t really wrong since the beginning" He really surprised him that Rhea chose to appoint an unknown mercenary as the new Professor, even if he was his benefactor´s son, but now everything made more sense. "The real question is why, what are her plans and why is she being so secretive about it. He had known her for a long time, but he knew he had never completely known her. "She has always been like the sea; what we see and what she is are completely different realities.

"I will need time to unveil the truth behind all of this" he thought. All kind of matters were demanding his attention, but he promised himself to have more time to investigate on it. "For now, I will place this book at its place until I have some time to spare" he thought as he carefully closed the door behind him after he made sure that no one was in the aisles.

As silence invaded the room one of the armchairs doors slowly opened.

"That was a close call" Claude sighed. "I should have left this place after returning the diary but I did have to keep reading. If I got caught it would have been problematic. But it seems that I´m not the only one that is interested about its content, if someone like Seteth appeared to be so interested, there must be some truth behind it. I wonder how many people know about this. Things are getting interesting, but I need to keep careful about all of it" he wondered as he silently left the room as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are some paralogues left that I plan to add. I can´t wait to enter Zahras.


	55. Beyond the crimson veil

**1/13 Guardian Moon**

"Why are we here? You have been silent all the way to this place!"

"Keep silent, Kronya. We wouldn´t be here if you hadn´t acted on your own. Things has gotten complicated with master´s injuries and now is your duty to resolve this matter once and for all"

"I´ve told you hundreds of times already, you didn´t need to be so harsh" Kronya said as she cherished the area of her arms, where fresh scars could be seen.

"You know that I was quite lenient if we take into account the gravity of the situation. Anyway, your objective is quite easy this time. You only need to attract the host of the Fell Star to this place"

"He won´t probably come alone. His dear students will come to his aid"

"Kill them all. Isn´t that what you wished for? You are free to kill any of them. If you do as I told you, you will be properly rewarded" Actually her real objective was to buy him the time needed to prepare a portal to Zahras, although there was also the possibility that she could achieve their objective without resorting to such device. That was the reason why he was leading an army of their own. One of the beasts they were controlling suddenly roared, but apart from that they were quite docile under their command.

"I will comply, but I only have a condition"

"Which one?"

"If I can neutralize him can I keep his body?"

"For what purpose would you do something like that?" he asked disgusted.

"You know how lonely I´ve always been. His corpse would surely be a better company that what I´ve experienced until now" she said with a sadistic smile. He had never understood her, but it was clear that she was insane. "Master Thales experimented too hard on her" he thought. Kronya was a capable fighter, but she was prone to prolong unnecessarily the suffering of their objectives as Duscur could tell him. Even though she achieved their objective of causing disruption, the way she butchered countless soldiers was unnecessarily cruel, including for their standards. When he confronted Master Thales about it, he simply shrugged. "I didn´t prepare her to be a nun. She is my dog and as long as she is useful that is enough"

"I have high expectations on you, don´t dare to disappoint me. Do whatever you want with the corpse"

As he focused himself on the preparations of the ritual, the Flame Emperor came to his mind. If he was going to come, it was highly probable that the Flame Emperor would come with him. "Last time we were too lenient with her. If she dares to oppose us directly, I will have no other option but to get rid of her. Regarding the Fallen Star I can´t let nuisances like that risk the success of our plans. Eliminating their weapon would prove to be a waste of resources, but if that way they could get rid of the Fallen Star he thought that it was a well enough trade off.

…

"My Teacher!"

Edelgard came rushing to his place, catching her breath in front of his door.

"What happened, Edelgard?"

"Those responsible of your father´s death…They are at the sealed forest. One of the knights of Seiros was commenting it in the main entrance, it is a matter of minutes before the news arrive to the archbishop´s ears too. I promise to tell you any news I could know. Whatever you decide to do, I will comply with your decision"

"How interesting turn of events. However, you should be careful, if you let consume yourself by vengeance, everything could end badly" Sothis said inside his head. "How strange that they had appeared so close to the monastery, they are idiots…or they are up to something. I won´t tell you to do nothing, but keep an eye on everyone"

"I will protect everyone" he said to her.

"I wouldn´t expect less" Sothis smiled from her throne room.

"Thank you for telling me, Edelgard. Summon everyone. This is our opportunity to strike them"

"I will certainly tell them. I´m sure everyone wants to lend you a hand, my Teacher, but please be careful, I´m sure that you will be their main objective"

"Don´t worry, Edelgard. This won´t be the time I fall" he said as he patted her shoulder. "I will be waiting all of you at the main hall"

"Understood!"

He prepared himself and in no time, he headed to the main entrance. The area was unusually crowded, soldiers wearing their armors.

"Sorry for making you wait!" Edelgard excused herself as she was accompanied by the rest of the Black Eagles, including Flayn.

"I´ve heard everything from Edelgard. Professor, I promise you that I won´t fail you. This is the opportunity I´ve been waiting to thank you for everything you have done for us" Ferdinand said, with his spear already prepared.

"Ferdie, you surely sounded more mature than usual, I don´t dislike that part of yours"

"If Edelgard agrees on it I have no objections to make" Hubert said with a neutral expression.

"Let´s give them a good beating, they deserve it!" Caspar roared.

"Caspar, please don´t shout like that so close to me, my ears hurt" Linhardt complained. "After everything that happened a few weeks ago I have the feeling that we won´t see any more difficult. I´m counting on you"

"If Linhardt has so much energy that means that we will certainly succeed" Dorothea smiled.

"Of course, Dorothea! I won´t disappoint you, Professor. I will do my best for everyone. Together there is nothing we can´t defeat" Petra smiled

"I will do my best too, but please, don´t put me in the front line, it´s too scary!"

"I will do my best Professor, I can´t thank you enough for what you did when you saved me" Flayn genuinely smiled.

"Wait a moment!" Rhea said as she hurriedly approached them, accompanied by her personal guard. "Our forces will take care of such menace. It is clear that they have appeared so close to the monastery to provoke you into attacking them. I will not tolerate your loss at any costs"

"Don´t worry, Professor, I will make sure that they pay what they did to your father" Catherine said looking at him as she unsheathed Thunderbrand. "I will make sure that they will pay for everything they did"

"I want to go" his tone was firm, but he said it harsher than expected making everyone silent.

"I command you to stay here. That is not negotiable" Rhea said with a serious expression. "I understand how you feel, but that must be the intention of our enemy. They hope you come to them to finish what they started"

"Lady Rhea, I must dare to disagree" Edelgard said as she approached her. "Our Professor is a capable fighter that has been battling our current enemy now for a few months. Even if their objective is to weaken us, they don´t realize that the bonds between us have turned ourselves into a competent team, we won´t fall easily into their traps and we will prevail. Furthermore, without your presence here they could aim to enter the monastery when it is at its most vulnerable. Wouldn´t it be better if a small force went to annihilate them while our main forces make sure that the monastery stays safe? The Professor and some of us have already been there so we won´t be battling in an unknown terrain"

Rhea was silent for a few seconds before looking at him.

"Promise me that you will return"

"I will"

"I trust your words and with the power of the Sword of the Creator I highly doubt that you will be found in peril, but don´t underestimate the dangers that are awaiting you" Rhea said as she nodded. "We will make sure that the monastery stays safe. Get rid of them. Make sure that no one survives" she commanded as she left accompanied by a surprised Catherine.

"Edelgard, you really are persuasive"

"Nothing to feel proud about. It´s part of my training after all and I didn´t lie. After all this time together, our bonds had grown deeper and that will be the key for our victory"

"I couldn´t agree more" he smiled.

"Wait a second!" shouted Leonie as she approached them, her face red. "You are about to leave to hunt them down, right? Please let me accompany you, I must avenge Master Jeralt for what they have done!" Leonie was already wearing a battle armor, her lance and bow already prepared for battle. Looking at her he knew she wouldn´t give up until he acceded to let her go with them.

"She really was loyal to your father" Sothis commented inside his head.

"I have no reasons to oppose"

"I won´t disappoint you" she quickly nodded

"In that case, let me join too"

"Lysithea? What are you doing here?"

"I suspected that Leonie was so altered because they had found out about their location. The Professor has really treated me well and I wish to lend a hand. Don´t worry, Professor I will do my best"

"I know, I´m counting on all of you" he nodded at all of them as he led them into the outskirts of the monastery.

….

The forest was completely silent as they approached the area where they had been for the last time spotted. The leaves of the trees where moving, but apart from that they could hear nothing. Even Caspar was keeping silent.

She could feel a faint magic presence in the air.

"I sense magic in front of us, they must be close" she said as she approached Byleth

"I sense it too, prepare battle formations. The cover of the forest will abandon us soon" he said as he unsheathed his own sword. As he said so the trees around them grew scarcer and they could see what it was awaiting them.

Soldiers clothed in black armor were accompanied by beasts similar to those they had battled back at the old chapel. All their enemies were covering their faces with masks, but she could see that their flesh was pale as a corpse.

"How many visitors have come to visit the poor Kronya, such an honor. You must be an idiot if you have come here. Do you wish to die like your dear father?" Kronya said. She wasn´t hiding her appearance anymore, showing them how unnatural she was. "Perhaps you can´t recognize me like this? I´m Monica the sweet girl all of you were stupid enough to trust for a while" Kronya laughed as she momentarily changed herself to the looks of Monica. "That girl was so boring, but she makes a good suit, don´t you think?" she laughed.

"Disgusting" Leonie muttered, her lace trembling of fury as her eyes were focused on her.

"Kronya" Byleth said as he walked forward

"Uh?"

"You are dead" the tone of the Professor was calm, but she could see the fury in his eyes.

"Are you feeling cocky just because you are in front of your dear students? Pathetic. For your insolence I will make sure all of you die a painful death. I will be sitting on your corpses by the end of the day. Slaughter them like the animals they are!" she shouted as she signaled them to the mutated beasts, the moment she did so, they roared as they approached them.

One of the beasts tried to bite her, but she was able to avoid the attack and retaliated with an axe attack to the face of the beast. Their mages were releasing powerful spells against the beasts while Bernadetta and Leonie were shooting arrows to the monsters' weak spots. To her left Caspar and Ferdinand were blocking the path of the armored units of the enemies while Byleth was fighting against another beast a few meters from him.

"Where is Solon?" she wondered as she crushed the beast´s skull with a brutal hit of her axe that used the combined power of her Crests. She highly doubted that Kronya would be acting on her own with the support of such number of troops.

With a roar the beast that was fighting Byleth fell to the ground as he finished it off.

"We have to keep going forward!" he shouted as he faced his next adversary.

They were steadily advancing through the enemy lines. With the combined forces of all of them even the fiercest beasts were incapable of overwhelming them.

"You have been training really hard, don´t you?" Kronya laughed as she suddenly rushed to the position where Byleth was fighting one of the armored soldiers.

"Byleth, behind you!"

Byleth was able to block the attack of Kronya´s main weapon but received a slash of her golden dagger in the leg, red blood pouring from his wound. A mere look to her main weapon made her realize it wasn´t an ordinary one; a faint light was coming from it and sparks of light were released from the weapon every time their swords impacted against each other.

"I thought the dagger would do the same trick than with your father, but I guess I was wrong. What a pity. I will make sure to kill you anyway, don´t worry you will be seeing your father soon"

"I won´t die by your sword. There won´t be any redemption for you, Kronya" Byleth said as he tried to pierce her heart.

"So aggressive, that´s the kind of guy I like the most" Kronya laughed.

The rest of their forces were quickly approaching them, but Kronya and Byleth were so close to each other as they fought that it was impossible to shoot at them without injuring the other.

"Make sure that they aren´t more hidden troops around here" she commanded as she kept an eye on their surroundings.

…..

"You fight well despite being an idiot. Did your father cry as he was dying? Just curious" Kronya said as she tried to break through his guard.

"You won´t distract me, if you need to rely on dirty tricks to try to hit me you are doomed" he said as he parried another of her attacks and quickly counterattacked. Kronya´s attacks were fast and deadly, but he knew he had more stamina than her as her movements started to get slower.

"What are your objectives?"

"You really think that I would tell someone like you such information? Don´t make me laugh. Enough of this nonsense I´ve got bored of fighting you" she said as suddenly her sword grew brighter and exploded sending both of them to the ground. As he was trying to stand up again Kronya was already on him a dagger on her hand. Stopping her arm with his own, they rolled on the floor trying to kill each other with their respective daggers.

"This wasn´t my only trick" she laughed as her armor suddenly released a dagger that immobilized him.

"Poison" he thought, as he tried to move, but his body wasn´t answering his commands. Kronya was already on him, her dagger about to hit him when an arrow pierced her from behind.

"Ugh!"

Taking advantage of it and using the power of his crest he was able to overcome the poison that was paralyzing him and stabbed her in the stomach. Looking at the owner of the arrow she could see Leonie with a furious look on her face.

"This is for master Jeralt!"

…

"Me? Defeated by you? How can it be? Impossible!"

"This is the best you can do? Your life ends here" he said as he started to approach her. In the split of a second Kronya threw a dagger at him, but he was able to avoid it and with a quick swift of the Sword of the Creator he cut one of the tendons of her feet off, the moment the sword bit her flesh she screamed in pain.

"Your suffering is nothing compared to what my father suffered. You won´t find mercy here" He said as he hit her in the head with his sword hilt and he prepared to unleash the fatal blow.

"My Teacher! Another beast!" Thanks to Edelgard´s voice he was able to avoid the projectile aimed at him, but Kronya took advantage of the situation and started to run away, limping.

"Edelgard, everyone, get rid of the beast. I will chase her down!" he said as he started to chase her.

"No problem my Teacher, I will keep them safe!" Edelgard shortly smiled before engaging in combat against the giant beast in front of her.

Even though she was heavily wounded, Kronya was able to keep a fair distance from him, although the trail of blood she was leaving behind was telling him that she wouldn´t last for too long. He cut through bushes and trees alike as he swiftly approached her.

"Leave me alone!" Kronya cried in despair as she realized he was coming closer and closer.

"After all the pain that you have caused? Never!" he shouted as he released the power of the Sword of the Creator, aiming to her heart, but he failed and he only hit one of her arms. Kronya fell over a few meters from where she was due to the impact, arriving to an empty square, partially destroyed columns all around him.

"You are strong, I can´t deny that, but if you think that you will survive you are wrong. The forces that you have faced…there are only a fragment of our true force!" she shouted as she prepared a last stand with the dagger of her bell.

"No matter the enemy I will crush all of them. I won´t have any mercy with all of you. Now prepare to die" he said as she approached her.

"DIE!" Kronya shouted as she jumped on him with the strength she had left, but he easily parried the attack and buried the sword in her belly, its tip showing from her back.

"The fight is over" he said as he released the sword from her belly, her guts partially coming out. As he did so, she fell on her knees, too weak to move away from him. He then raised his sword…when suddenly a fireball impacted in him, stopping his attack. He tried to move again but he was trapped in a magic cage of pure magic.

"So the Fallen Star was able to defeat you, uh? I wouldn´t expect less. You have miserably failed again, Kronya"

"Solon…please" Kronya begged as blood left her lips.

"Don´t dare to speak my name again, whore" Solon said as he slapped her face, sending her to the ground. "So useless, only in death you will find some utility" he said as he unsheathed a dagger with golden glyphs on it.

"NO!" she cried as Solon started to open wide her chest. As he did so a dark mist started to pour from her chest.

"I need to break free from this place, I don´t have a good feeling about this" he thought as he started to hit the magic cage, but its barriers were sturdy enough to withstand his powerful attacks.

"It has no use Fallen Star; the barriers have been powered by magic crystals prepared in Zahras itself" Solon said as he knew his intentions while the fog around him got thicker. "I´ve waited so long for this moment…A pity that the Sword of the Creator will be lost forever"

"What are you trying to do, Solon? If you feel so confident fight against me!"

"I would be a fool if I did so, although you will have what you desire in no time" he said as he stood up again, a crest stone in his hand. "Proud city, open your gates to your rightful sons, may your everlasting light never die and grant us access to your miracles" he said as the mist around him turned crimson red, a portal starting to appear in front of him.

"Great city of Zahras, please hear my plea" Solon continued as fire-red chains were released from the portal, chaining him. It didn´t matter how much he tried to release himself for the grip, it was too strong as he slowly approached the portal. At that rate he would have no other option but to use his divine pulse. He closed his eyes and focused on returning back in time.

"Your unnatural abilities have no power here" Solon laughed when nothing happened. "I´ve been preparing this moment for a long time. Did you think I would ignore such a powerful threat to our plans? Yes, I know that you are capable of such power, but we adapted to face such threat a long time ago. Reserve your forces for what will be waiting you to the other side of the entrance" Solon said as the red fog grew even brighter, he was mere meters away from it, but instead of heat he could only feel a deep cold that was menacing to overwhelm his whole body.

"It can´t end like this" he thought as he desperately tried to free himself from its chains.

….

With a final roar the beast fell to the ground, making the ground around it violently shake.

"Good job everyone! We need to find the Professor now, come with me!" she said as she entered the forest in front of her. As she entered it, she could see marks of sword attacks and a trail of blood. However, as she approached the end of the small forest, she could sense a strange energy coming from the area in front of her. "I don´t have a good feeling about this" she thought as she was finally able to leave the forest behind her, the moment she saw what was happening she was shocked in disbelief.

Byleth was chained by fire red chains that were coming from a portal covered in crimson red mist, yet she could only feel a freezing cold around her. Kronya was lying dead in the center of the square and Solon was witnessing how Byleth was being shallowed by the mist.

"Stop it!" she shouted as she started charging at him.

"So it seems that your allegiances have changed. How regretful" Solon said as he casted a myriad of spells against her. She was able to avoid them, but she knew the more she spent avoiding his attacks the less time she would have to assist him. Luckily the rest of the students were starting to arrive.

"Is that the Professor? He is in great peril; we need to help him!" Ferdinand shouted.

"Such powerful magic, so Solon is willing to profane this sacred land" Hubert chuckled as he released his own dark magic spells.

"All of you are a bunch of fools if you think you can succeed!" Solon shouted as reinforcements appeared around him, creating a wall between the Professor and them. They didn´t have too much time left as he was already partially engulfed by the mist.

Activating the power of her dual crests she used a brutal hit to break through the enemy lines. Using all her strength she smashed her enemies to the ground. Noticing her, he extended her hand as she did the same. She was about to reach for him when a rotten hand came from the mist, catching Byleth in its grip as he was finally engulfed by the mist. The moment he was shallowed by it, an explosion sent her to the ground as the mist disappeared, leaving nothing but Kronya´s corpse behind.

"NO!"

"What a pity, you were so close yet you have failed, although I must say that it would have served nothing, those chains would have imprisoned both of you"

"Where have you sent him? You will pay what you have done!"

"To a place worse than hell itself. A place of everlasting pain where he will luckily lose his sanity before he loses anything else, that will be his undying curse"

"You belittle him if you find that you can contain him. I believe in him and I´m sure that he will come again to all of us. Your life ends today, Solon" she said as she picked up her axe.

"It seems that the faith you lost a lifetime ago has finally returned. Faith is for those weak of heart. I´m not surprised that you still have faith since you are weak. Prepare to face your judgement! I will have no mercy with you, broken weapon"

…


	56. The unholy city

"Byleth, Byleth, please open your eyes!"

He could hear a faint voice from the distance, but he could see nothing. Only shadows remained around him, speaking in an intelligible language. He was feeling extremely tired, as if the armor he was wearing had turned him into stone. Resting was turning into a too tempting option.

"Fight it off!" shouted the voice, clearer than before, a small spark of light appearing in front of him. He extended his arm and touched the light and the moment he did he opened his eyes once again. Even though there was still a lingering darkness around him, he could see Sothis standing next to him.

"I told you to not overcommit, we are trapped here because of you" she shouted as she slapped him in the face. "Don´t you understand that this place could turn into our tomb, the air is filled with a dangerous essence. This isn´t a place we should stay any longer. We have to…Ey, don´t embrace me like that, it´s embarrassing!" Sothis complained as he hugged her.

"How could you touch me? I thought you were incapable of that" Even though his cheek hurt because of her slap he couldn´t avoid feeling happiness to been able to touch her.

"Now that you say it…It must be this place. In normal circumstances I wouldn´t be able to do it, but this place is everything but normal" she said as she pointed to the sky above them.

Instead of blue, the sky above them was purple, although most of it was covered in dark mist. They were standing in what appeared to be an ancient watchtower, although the ceiling appeared to had collapsed a lifetime ago, dust everywhere. He could also see a green light in the distance, what appeared to be a city, but apart from that everything was covered in pure darkness. He picked a rock of the ruins of the tower and threw it to the dark, waiting to hear the sound of the impact, but nothing happened.

"We should be careful or we may end like the stone you had just thrown"

"Where are we? Could it be we died?"

"Don´t say nonsense, that would mean I was a ghost, but it is clear I´m not" Sothis said as she crossed her arms in disbelief of his words. "The only thing I know is that we are trapped here. My instinct tells me we should leave this place as soon as possible, before we find ourselves in a dire situation. For now, let´s leave this place" she said as she casted a lightning spell, casting away partially the shadows around them as he did the same. As they descended the stairs, he observed the insides of the tower where they had landed. Even though it was a ruin he could see that some ornaments had survived the pass of time, strange statues of unique materials scattered around them, although the thing that caught him the attention the most was a strange eye.

"That eye…I´ve seen it before. It was also on the scythe of the Death Knight. Hanneman told me that the scythe was made of materials that had never been used in Fódlan"

"Could it be of an ancient civilization? In that case, could it be this place what remains of it and in that case, what happened here?" Sothis said as she continued walking. "Too many questions and I can´t answer them. It is really irritating"

"I´m glad that at least we can talk like this" he smiled to her.

"You should reserve your smiles for the little Princess, but I´m happy too, even if this isn´t an optimal situation" Sothis smiled back as they left behind the watchtower. Dead trees were scattered around them, although it was clear that they were walking through an old path, looking at the road before them. Most of the light was coming from their spells, although the purple sky gave them some brightness, when it wasn´t covered by the strange dark mist. Looking at the everchanging sky, he wondered if their own world would someday turn into something like that; an eternal fight between a fading light and darkness.

"I hope it never happens" Sothis said without looking at him. "This place is everything, but normal. I can feel it in the air" she said as she suddenly stopped.

A pair of giant statues were standing in front of them at the opposite sides of a colossal bridge. Looking at their armors, they appeared to be from the royalty, although he would never know who they were since the inscriptions at the base of the statues were unreadable. One of the statues was resting on a giant sword made of what appeared to be crystal, while the other was holding an orb and a rod made of the same materials. The ruins of Zanado were small compared to the size of them. In the distance, he could see what appeared to be a city, covered in a strange green light.

"It seems that there is no other way but to cross the bridge. I can´t see nothing from here so make sure to not fall or even I won´t be able to save you" Sothis said as they started to cross the bridge in front of them. The only sound they could hear was the one from their own footsteps. The air was completely idle, not a single breeze passing through, but he could smell it. There was a fade scent in the air as if something had been left to rot for a long time and inexplicably, that smell was starting to make him feel uneasy.

"Solon knew about this place. That must mean that this place and their kind must be related" he said as he continued walking.

"I agree with you, but I don´t think they are here anymore. He described this place as a prison and a place of suffering so that means that he fears it for a particular reason; I wonder why. I hope we can leave this place before anything bad happens to us" she said as she continued walking. The more they approached, the brighter the strange light was until they had a clear sight of what was awaiting them ahead. A colossal gate was guarding the entrance to the place but the walls to the sizes and in the different levels of the city where irradiating its own spectral light. The putrid scent was strongly coming from the city, which made him keep his hand closer to his sword.

"It seems that there is no other entrance to this place. I don´t like it, but I don´t think we have other option but to keep forward, she said as she placed a hand on one of the sizes of the colossal gate. Doing the same in the other side, they slowly pushed the gate. The sound of rusted iron moving once again could be heard everywhere, but they could do nothing to avoid it.

As the path before them was unlocked, they were about to step into the city, but its insight paralyzed them. The square before them was covered in corpses; some of them appeared to have died battling while others appeared to have asked for mercy. Spikes with the heads of some of them were placed in the surroundings of the statues in the center of the square as a ghoulish welcome to the city. The rotten smell was strong there, but it wasn´t coming from the corpses but from a slime like substance that was scattered around all the place.

"What the hell had happened here?" Sothis asked shocked, looking all around the place and carefully measuring her steps to avoid touching the dead bodies scattered around. "This wasn´t the place of a battle; this was the place of a slaughter"

"Even children were slaughtered here" he muttered as he took a closer look to some of the heads in pikes, the head of a newborn sparking ire inside him. "Solon wants us to meet the same fate, I´m sure about it. If this place is like a prison the culprit of these crimes must be around here" he said as he accidently touched one of the bodies which turned into dust. "This must have happened a long time ago; but we must be careful"

"I agree" she said as they carefully left the square behind them and headed to one of the roads that departed from there. Corpses were scattered all around them; some of them wielding weapons he had never seen. Even the city was strange. Even though the lower level was similar in design to places such as the monastery the higher they went the stranger it got with buildings with small domes made of what appeared to be crystal, but most of them were too deteriorated; the slime like substance on them.

"I wonder how this place looked like before its doom"

"It must have been a magnificent city, that´s for sure. Looking at the corpses this must have been a human city, but I don´t really have memories of this place, although I can´t stop feeling uneasy here" she said as she shivered a bit. "That smell is really everywhere and there is no warm here"

"Don´t worry, we will leave this place together" he said placing a hand on her shoulder. It was strange to be able to touch her after all this time, but it wasn´t uncomfortable.

"You really are an expert in boosting the morale of the people around you, don´t you?" she smiled. "It seems that we have arrived to the highest level" she said as she suddenly stopped.

In front of them there was a building similar to the cathedral of the monastery, but twice its size and with a doom that reflected the sky above them. The doors before them appeared to be made of a strange metal; no matter how much they pushed the giant doors it didn´t move an inch.

"The main entrance appears to be blocked. We should take another path" Sothis said after examining the nature of the gates. "I feel a faint scent of magic coming from the inside, keep your sword ready, just in case"

Walking around the building they were able to find a breach in the walls. Accessing from there they were able to access the building. They had entered what appeared to be a great hall; a giant structure made out of crystal in the center of it. Around them there were some bodies, but their numbers were fewer that the ones they had been finding as they arrived there.

"What are these things?" Sothis asked looking at strange creatures made out of metal. There were of all sizes, but looking at the dust on them they appeared to have been abandoned a long time ago.

"I´ve never seen something like this" he admitted. Their size was similar to the statues of the saints in the cathedral, but they appeared to have been used as war weapons, although how they were used remained unknown to them. Hidden between the metal beasts he could see a faint light coming from what appeared to be an abandoned armor. He extended his arm to reach for it and he was suddenly engulfed in a strange light.

"Byleth!" shouted and alarmed Sothis, but as soon as it started it stopped.

"Don´t worry, Sothis, I´m fine. I´m as surprised as you"

"What are you saying? You are covered in a strange armor, I can´t even see your face!"

Touching the area around his face he realized that he appeared to have been covered in full armor, although he could see the same as if he weren´t wearing a helmet at all.

"How strange, I can see perfectly fine…" he was starting to say when words started to appear in front of him.

"Analysis of surroundings completed; unusual levels of energy detected. Proceed with caution"

"You wouldn´t believe me, but this thing is talking to me" he said looking at her, completely confused.

"Really? What does it say about me?"

"Strange levels of energy are found within the creature´s body. Threat level A. Use of heavy weaponry highly advised"

"It recommends me to kill you"

"Your new fancy armor is stupid them" Sothis said as she crossed her arms in disappointment.

He was trying to find a way to get rid of the armor when a sudden message appeared in front of him. "To know what happened and access my memories place your hand on the altar"

"Wait a second. The armor is saying that we can know what happened here by placing my hand on the altar" he said as he looked for it. "That must be the place"

"Are you really going to trust what an unknown thing is telling you?"

"We don´t have other option. Perhaps if we know what happened here, we might be able to unveil the truth behind everything that has happened until now" he said as he advanced to the altar in the center of the room, placing his hand on it a faint blue light started to glow and suddenly both of them were engulfed by the light around them.

….

"How long are you going to be there?" a familiar voice asked. The woman standing in front of her was wearing elegant clothes that revealed her voluptuous body, but she knew that she was a mighty warrior, worthy to reckon.

The sun was starting to hide, but its magnificent light was reflected on the floor. The breeze was gentle and soon enough her watch was about to end.

"As long as the sages keep talking, you know them. They have been like this since they brought to the city the stones from the comet. They look like children with a new toy"

"Of all people that the leader of the guard of the council says something like that…How interesting"

"The sages are only interested in the protection I grant them. They don´t care if I don´t share their beliefs or not and that´s enough to me"

"Anyway, this time they must be really excited if they had been discussing about the new discovery for days"

She had to admit that she was right about it. A few weeks ago, to the north of the city a meteor had impacted with the surface. The scouts sent there have reported that they have found nothing remarkable apart from highly energized stones with a strange energy within it. The moment the discovery was made, the sages of the city had treasured it and they had been discussing about the matter for days.

"Not every day a comet falls from the sky. Because of their size some of them had baptized the comet as the Fell Star. It was really a magnificent view"

"I hope they can at least find some time for the peace talks. This is the best opportunity to achieve an everlasting peace once and for all"

Some sages say that conflict was inherent to human nature, but only acknowledging it would solve nothing. Despite their differences, the different realms were willing to reach an agreement to put aside their differences. It had cost decades, but finally there was an ending to such conflicts.

"The fact that they are willing to sit together speaks for itself"

"I leave you their security them"

"Where are you going?"

"I must leave on an expedition with Thales. Don´t worry I will take good care of him until he returns", she said winking an eye to her.

"As long as you don´t do anything stupid that´s enough to me" she briefly smiled before she returned to her duties.

The moonlight was already entering through the windows when the gates behind her finally opened. The sages were escorted by some of the knights of her guard and by the robots they had been developing during the last years. Robots have been part of their daily life for the last century, but most of them were employed for domestic labor. However, those in front of her were the size of giants and were wielding weapons of a colossal size that would annihilate everything that would enter their sight. The name of such robots was Titanus.

"Good evening, my Lords"

"Good evening, Captain. Today was a truly fruitful day. The gift from the skies will certainly lead us to a new era of true peace. Please guard us to the main hall. I am sure that the visitors of all around the world are eager to know about our new discovery" said Anaximander, one of the leaders of the great city and a close friend of her beloved Thales.

"I will comply"

"I know you will" he smiled as he walked beside her. "The Gods have granted us a precious gift"

She was intrigued by her words, but she said nothing. Knowing him, she knew he would reveal the new information in front of everyone.

As they arrived to the Cathedral of the Light, the magnificent doors in front of them automatically opened, revealing a huge crowd of persons already waiting for them. By the look of the clothes, she knew that people from all over the world had agreed to come there. Looking at all of them, she had the glimmer of hope that the endless wars would finally find an end. In the center of the room a brilliant mass of light could be seen. It was the energy control system of the whole city, capable of transporting troops all over the world in case of need; its light capable of eclipsing the sun. Taking her place behind the sages she stood silent as Anaximander walked forward the altar.

"Welcome everyone to the birthplace of mankind. I will assure you that this will be the day that our quarrels and disputes will be forgotten for good as a new age of enlightenment comes to us.

Decades ago, we sent a spacecraft into the unknown with the hopes of discovering the mysteries of our Universe. Our knowledge of the outer world has expanded since them, but the incessant quarrels between us have been an important obstacle in our progress. However, the Gods had granted us a precious gift to us" he said as he showed to them a stone which released brilliant emerald sparks from its inside. "This Stone holds a high level of energy, enough to bring into reality our wildest dreams. It came from a comet that impacted near this place a few weeks ago"

"Do you know about its origin?"

"Luckily yes. It comes from the system of Sirius. It seems to have come from a planet near the dual stars. However, what is fascinating about it is that the trajectory of the comet was unusually erratic, as if it was alive and it was able to warp immense distances in the space. We are not alone anymore, my Lords"

The moment he spoke those words whispers could be here across the entire hall, but she remained silent processing what she had just heard.

"Our best scouts are currently exploring the area of impact and they have sent to us samples from it. The amount of energy stored in these stones could allow us with the help of our knowledge reach new heights. We could even create portals that allowed us to reach places that we couldn´t reach in an entire lifetime. Such is the power stored inside these rocks. That is the reason why the council considers that it is in the best interest to obtain more of these precious substances. To allow us a great power in our search for the real truth of this universe and everything that contains it"

"You said that we weren´t alone anymore. If there are intelligent beings out there, couldn´t that mean our own demise?"

"That is the reason why you have been summoned here. Separately, we could face great times of peril, but together we could achieve unthinkable things. This is the time when decisions really matter. Please, forget our petty differences to embrace the endless possibilities that this world has to offer us"

As he said those words, an even higher murmur spread through the entire hall, several minutes needed until everything calmed down, but looking at the faces of everyone there she knew that an agreement was close.

"But at what cost?" she wondered, looking at their faces. She feared that conflicts would eventually arise, but she was the captain of the guard of the council, she didn´t have a voice in such matters.

"If so, powerful are these stones show us their power" said one of the leaders of one of the factions summoned there.

"I was expecting such questions and I shall show you their real power" he said as he carefully placed the emerald stone in a vessel. "With the combined power of these stones and our technology our power shall be unlimited!" he shouted as he released a spell on it, creating a bond between the energy control system and the stone. As he did so a green flame appeared in the middle of the room, quickly expanding as it created a surface similar to a small lake. The lights in the hall quickly extinguished as the ethereal surface showed them the wonders of the universe; comets, planets, stars quickly appearing and disappearing in front of them until it suddenly stopped in front of a planet similar to theirs; the only difference that it orbited around twin suns. "The source of this power awaits us, in no time we could send an expedition to this planet and with this energy we will certainly…" he couldn´t finish his words as the green light of the stone suddenly turned purple, a dark fog emanating from the ethereal gate. She quickly used her lance to destroy the vessel, but it was too late, since the mist was already there.

She could see nothing because of the mist, but she could perfectly hear the cries of those who were slaughtered. One of the Titanus ran to the center of the hall only to be ripped apart as if it was a little doll. She was familiar with the scent of blood, but she didn´t expect to smell it in this place. She tried to identify the source of the attack when she received a brutal impact to the side that sent her flying to one of the walls. Coughing blood, she realized that what they have released upon the world would certainly destroy everything.

"We need to seal this threat" she thought as she activated the mechanism to close the door of the hall. She was about to pick her lance when something trapped her, she didn´t have time to cry or shout as she was engulfed by the dark.

"My dear Thales…" was the only thing she could thought of as the world turned black around her.

…..

"So that is what happened here. It is infuriating that such tragedy could have been avoided. At least they succeeded in trapping whatever they released here" Sothis said next to him. Looking at his armor he realized it was the same armor he had seen her using, yet nobody was found inside.

"If this is the place where it was trapped why it isn´t here" he wondered, when the strange armor he was wearing sent him a message again.

"Is the armor talking to you again?" Sothis asked as he advanced to the bottom of the hall and pressed the hand of one half destroyed statue, the moment he did a small passage was opened before them, a fissure a few meters from them. He could feel the rottenness coming from it, but there was no other option.

"It says that it is down there" he said as he pointed the fissure with his sword. "To end this once and for all and returning to our world we must return the power it has stolen" he said looking at the emptied power generator. "Only then, we will be able to escape this place without harm"

"There is no other option?"

"The other option is to rot here for the end of eternity"

"That´s not an option then" Sothis sighed. "I can´t really understand how an armor can talk, but after witnessing what happened I guess some things are hard to explain" she said as she approached the fissure and offered to him her hand. "Let´s escape from this place then"

"Together" he smiled as he accepted her hand, with a final look to each of them they jumped into the fissure and entered the depths of the unholy place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the armor I thought about something like the Artian armor in case that someone is curious about it.


	57. Deicide

Darkness was completely surrounding them as they fell deeper and deeper. The air coming from the pit was filled with that nauseating scent, but his grip of Sothis´s hand didn´t grow weaker. Noticing they were entering a giant cave he released a spell to soften their fall the moment he could see the ground under them.

Carefully landing on the ground he quickly casted a spell to avoid being engulfed by the shadows around them. Giant pillars departed from the area, looking like giant trees climbing into the unknown.

"It seems that we have arrived to the bottom of this place" Sothis muttered beside him, carefully stepping forward. "Be prepare just in case" she warned him as they advanced forward.

Everything was completely silent, but his senses were completely alert. Every shadow could be an unknown threat; there was no other way but to react before they were overwhelmed. The giant cave where they were was completely empty, but the silence around them was completely unnatural.

"This isn´t a cave; this is a crypt" he thought as he readied his sword arm.

"What are you seeking in the deeps?" asked a voice from the bottom of the hall, the moment they heard those words a spectral light quickly approached them, making them able to see what was awaiting them. Rusted armors were scattered around the throne room, but what caught his attention was what was sitting on the throne.

Wearing a majestic armor, it appeared to be a king, with a golden crown on the top of its head, yet only a skull could be seen, purple flames instead of eyes. Next to him there was a sword of a monstrous size, which appeared to be made out of bones of a giant creature, small puddles of blue light coming from its cracks.

"A Fell Star and a misguided human, how interesting. Eternity really passes slowly when you are trapped here" The skeleton on the throne said, although it didn´t move an inch.

"So you were the responsible behind all that happened up there. We are going to make sure you don´t commit any crimes anymore"

"Is it a crime when they were the ones that offered themselves so willingly? The taste of human flesh has never been of my liking, but there was plenty of it here. However, now I will have enough nourishment to release myself from the chains of this place" it said as the purple flames in the hollowed skull growing brighter. "It´s been a while since the last time I´ve tasted a star" it said as it observed Sothis when it suddenly looked at him. "Proudful human, I have no interest on you, your kind hasn´t satisfied me the slightest yet I offer you a generous proposal. Feed me with her and I will spare your world. I will even give you the gift of immortality if you wish so, the only thing I ask for is for her flesh"

"I will never let you do that!" he said as he unsheathed his sword.

"The hell you are talking about? I´m not going to be devoured by such disgusting creature. You are getting on my nerves"

"It seems that both of you don´t seem to understand the situation" the mysterious corpse laughed as he sensed some movement behind the throne. "You are not going to leave this place alive; your energy is what I need to leave this place for good. You should have never trespassed here, now you will be consumed, by me, by the Abyss. And you, petty human, why embracing a lonely star? There are plenty like her in the sky, so many that I will always have nourishment. Why not serving one of them instead?"

"I won´t let you touch my friend!"

"A friend? Such idiocy is only found in humans, I guess. Millenniums sharing this forsaken place with your kin has given me some enlightenment about your idiocy. Very well then, I will taste your marrows while you still remain conscious. Sometimes true enlightenment can come through the worst suffering. After I exhaust all you have to give me you will faithfully serve me as your Lord and savior as an empty carcass, like them" the skeleton said pointing to the shadows that were moving behind the throne, the moment they approached he could see knights wearing a partially eroded armor, their flesh dried with two holes without end instead of their eyes. Among them he noticed the person that had seemed in the vision provided to them by the magic armor.

"This will be your fate. Perhaps I will use your flesh too. This body is too old for my liking, but I didn´t have nothing better to use" the corpse laughed as the knights behind him continued to approach, he could see that some knights were also approaching from behind. "I sentence both of you to die today, now fall to the Abyss" it said as he hit the floor with the giant sword next to him, making the floor under them crumble.

They were falling and they couldn´t see anything a few meters from them, yet he could sense movement around. In the split of a second, he was able to avoid an attack from one of the cursed knights while Sothis released potent fire spells around her. With the light of the spells he was able to see for a few seconds what was surrounding them and the moment he saw it the grip on his sword grew tighter. Countless knights were approaching them from all directions while they continued falling. In that bottomless pit there was no other light except the one that was coming from Sothis´s spells and the light of his own sword. The Sword of the Creator was able to rapidly tear through the metal and flesh of their enemies, but they continued approaching, as if they were unable to feel any pain.

"How troublesome they are!" Sothis shouted as she disintegrated some of the knights with a potent fire spell, the explosion sending some of the knights to the deeps, but more of them were coming to continue their onslaught.

Stopping one attack from behind he was able to counterattack with the Sword of the Creator, creating an opening for Sothis. With their joint forces they weren´t a real menace against them, but their numbers weren´t diminishing. As he avoided another attack, he realized why there were still plenty of enemies.

"We are fighting against the same enemies!" he shouted as he parried an attack aimed to his head.

"You must be kidding, how are we supposed to escape from here then?" Sothis said as she casted another spell. From behind one of their enemies was crawling to her.

"Sothis, careful!" he shouted as he used the whip form of the Sword of the Creator as he activated his crest. The enemy was impaled as it glowed for a second before it turned into dust.

"It´s gone for good" Sothis muttered as she erected a magic barrier to protect the two of them. "It seems that the combined power of the Crest and the Sword are able to break through these cursed creatures. In that case we will need to attack them with everything we have!" she shouted as she casted a potent spell with her inner strength.

With their combined forces they started to get the upper hand of them as the darkness around them grew weaker. It was the turn of the last fighter, the one who he had seen in the vision. Using her lance, she tried to jump on him, but he was faster. With a quick swift he cut her ankles off, making her fall on her knees. As he approached her, she was trying to stand up again using her lance, but it was already too late.

"Your sacrifice won´t be in vain. I will make sure that this nightmare ends for good" he said as he honored her with a warrior death and released her from her misery, only dust remaining where she was standing.

The moment the last of the warriors was defeated the dark mist around them disappeared, landing in front of the ancient throne.

"It seems that I underestimated your teamwork" it said as it laughed, rotten air coming from its mouth. "However, imminent death awaits to both of you, but I´m sure you will entertain me with your light" it said as it stood up and quickly approached them.

Their enemy tried to slam them with its giant sword. The earth beneath trembling with every brutal attacked that released.

"So annoying" Sothis said as she threw at him a giant fireball, but it opened its mouth and swallowed it.

"Don´t you understand? I won´t be defeated by any of you. A god is invisible and worshipped by those who envy its strength. Accept your fate and I will make sure to end your misery quickly" it said as his attack destroyed one of the pillars, large rocks falling from a ceiling impossible to see by the naked eye.

"I would pity anyone who would need to worship something as repulsive as you" Sothis said as her protective barrier destroyed the rocks falling on them. Taking advantage of the magic protection he quickly ran to one of the sizes. Their enemy tried to slam him with his giant sword, but he was faster and jumped on one of its legs as he used the full power of the Sword of the Creator. The sword bit the rusted armor and beneath it, infuriating their adversary. As he jumped backwards, he could see a black liquid coming out from the recent injury.

"Oh, so you can bleed. If you are capable of being hurt, I don´t mind giving you a good beating" Sothis smiled as she casted giant spears of lights.

As they continued attacking, they were slowly but steadily weakening it. Its attacks were turning erratic as the dark liquid continued pouring from its injuries. The purple light of the skull was glowing brighter as dark liquid started to come from it too.

"When we fight together there is nothing that can stop us. In times of need when we help each other all our obstacles are removed. Now is the time you will pay for your crimes!" he shouted as he jumped on its head and nailed the Sword of the Creator in the center of the skull. Dark mist came from the skull, but he insisted on his attack until the creature fell on his legs and finally collapsed. The moment it fell the sword he was wielding fell to the ground, causing a small tremor.

"So, is it over now?" Sothis asked as she caught her breath. The dark mist around them was starting to disappear.

"It seems like that, but I have no idea where we must head now" he said as he looked at his surroundings when suddenly an explosion happened that sent him to the ground.

"Arrogant fools! Do you think you are capable of defeating me so easily? Now that I am released from the chains of that old body, I will show both of you what I am capable of!" furiously hissed a voice from the deeps of the dead body as pure darkness started to come from it, first the legs and then the claws and tail; a creature of pure dark with not recognizable face. And it then jumped with an agonizing howl.

Sothis erected a magic barrier, but the creature was able to bypass it, since it didn´t have a solid body.

"Sothis no!" he shouted as he quickly approached, but it was already too late since Sothis was already engulfed in the black mist. He couldn´t see anything through the mist, but hearing her cries he knew she was suffering and then suddenly everything stopped. The fog disappeared and only the unconscious body of Sothis was left next to one of the destroyed pillars.

"Sothis!" he shouted as he quickly approached her location, picking her from the dust he placed a hand on her forehand to make sure that she was alright.

"You are a fool" she suddenly said as a magic explosion sent him flying to one of the remaining pillars. The impact made him cough blood, but he was able to avoid in the last second a spear of light aimed at him. When the dust settled what he saw made his heart fill with fury. Sothis´s lower body was covered in the dark oily substance, shadowy limbs clumsily moving from its base. The upper half of her was still herself but the black substance was pouring from her eyes and mouth.

"I won´t forgive you for this!" he shouted as he charged.

"Mortals can´t understand the dwellings of the gods" the creature said as it moved Sothis´s arms, the moment she extended her arms he was sent to the ground as the Sword of the Creator landed in her hand. The Sword was emitting purple sparks in the hands of its new owner.

"How could you?" he asked shocked

"The Sword is just answering to its true Lord. Bones and blood is the only thing that truly remain loyal and this is how you will meet your end; defenseless and by someone you called a friend, no matter what you do the victory will be mine, such a tender flesh" the dark mass at the bottom laughed as Sothis extended her other arm and the greatsword came to her call.

Avoiding one of the attacks aimed at him he jumped forward one of the columns. The only things he had with him were his armor and a dagger.

Even though the creature was laughing as it tried to kill him, he could hear a moaning of suffering from Sothis´s lips as her flesh grew paler. "It is consuming her from within" he realized. If he didn´t hurry up she would end up being consume by such creature, but he didn´t have any devices that could grant him the upper hand in the battle. The only thing left was using the power of his crest to its fullest.

Concentrating all the energy he had within, a sparking charge ran through his body as he quickly approached the agonizing Sothis and the dark matter surrounding her. Spears of light and dark came to him as he came closer but he evaded them. The giant sword furiously hit the ground but he was already jumping on her. She was a few meters of landing on top of her.

It was then when he felt a piercing pain as he was impaled by the Sword of the Creator, the very same sword which he had been using until now. The sword was biting its flesh as it were a feral animal, black slime coming from its wound.

"How pathetic, killed by your own sword" muttered the creature beneath, but he wasn´t gone for good as he tried to came closer. The closer he came the deeper the sword went through him. He could feel it leaving his back but it didn´t matter as long as he could touch her. The pain was almost unbearable and a feeling of tiredness was spreading through his entire body, yet he continued coming closer.

"Are you trying to find your end faster? Humans never cease to amuse me, you could have served me as a herald, yet you chose to stand by the side of your friend; the very same who has killed you, but your perseverance is worth of comment. I wonder if I will receive such power after I devour your flesh" the creature laughed. His body was already on the sword hilt as he touched Sothis´s face with his hands.

"Sothis, open your eyes" he said as he poured what remained of his strength, tears of blood failing on the Goddess´s face, but her usual green eyes were still covered in black slime.

"How pathetic, yet entertaining and now…"

"And now leave my body" Sothis shouted as a magic explosion engulfed both of them. An inhuman scream was heard as the black slime was engulfed in green flames, only the agonizing cries of the beast could be heard. He fell to the ground, but he didn´t feel the pain, his senses numbed by the blood loss.

"Don´t dare to enter my body again!" Sothis furiously said, but her fury turned into desperation when he saw how he was. "You idiot, since when I told you to die for me?"

"We are friends, right? This is the only thing I could do" he said with a weakened voice. The green flames around him felt somehow distant as Sothis´s voice rang inside his head. A light pain made him realize that Sothis had pulled the Sword of the Creator from his body off as she started to cast healing spells on him, although he could feel nothing as everything got darker.

"There is no purpose on trying to save him. He has dug his own grave" said a voice coming from the deeps of the fire. "If you dare to defy me, I will annihilate everything you hold dear until only ashes remain of the world you know. This is the promise for your insolence" the voice said as the flames gradually started to extinguish.

"Cursed it! I´m too weak and I can´t do nothing for you. If I am a Goddess how I am so powerless?" Sothis said as tears started to leave her eyes. He wanted to comfort her, but his body didn´t respond to his order, his own eyes were starting to fail him.

"There is no other option then" she said as she placed a hand on his chest as she was engulfed in a green aura, the moment she did so he could feel a renewed strength filling his entire body. He weakly smiled to her as he extended an arm to her when he stopped shocked.

Sothis was starting to disappear, consumed by the flame that was entering his body.

"What are you doing?"

"What do you think, dummy? I´m saving you" she said with a sad smile. "I´m afraid this might be the last time we will be talking like this. It was short but at least it was fun while it lasted"

"I don´t want you to die" he said as tears started to form within his eyes.

"Respect my decision as a friend. Besides, I won´t be gone for good, I´ll always be with you" she said as she gently smiled. Embracing her, he couldn´t avoid crying as her body continue to disappear.

"Now we are one, let the light of your heart guide you" she said as she finally disappeared, green particles floating around him.

As he stood up once again, the Sword of the Creator came to his aid, the moment he touched the Sword golden sparks came from it; a purifying aura extending through the battlefield.

"Do you think that because you have joined forces will you able to defeat me? You are delusional if you think you can achieve victory here"

"I won´t defeat you, I will destroy you for the evermore" he said as he approached him.

The creature roared and unreleased blow after blow against him, but he effortlessly stopped all of them. Which each impact green flames were released around him, consuming the corruption surrounding him, yet the flames didn´t harm him. With a final impact the sword of his enemy turned into dust, leaving the creature before him defenseless.

"If I can´t have that power, no one will have it!" the creature roared as a black cloud engulfed him. The impact made him fell to the ground. Acting out of instinct he was able to stop his right hand with his free one, his sword hand turned into a claw with a menacing eye opened in the middle of it, looking at him with hate. He knew he was trying to possess him like he did to Sothis, an intense pain flowing through his veins.

"Why won´t you just die?" the creature howled as he tried to use his own sword against him.

"If I died everything I´ve done would be in vain. My final days won´t be against you and you will never have control over my body!" he shouted as he charged his free hand with the power he had inherited, engulfing his entire body in blue and green flames. The beast howled and tried to run away, but it was too late as every single bit of its body was bitten by the flames. An explosion of pure light extended through the area, cleansing the corruption.

When he stood up once again, he could see a giant orb of light in front of him. Looking at his injured arm he realized that green veins were visible within his body, the crest of flames irradiating energy from his chest. Touching his hair, he realized that it has changed as well.

"I won´t forget you, my dear friend" he thought as he touched the giant orb of light, the moment he did, it raised to the sky; a red star appearing in the once cloudy sky.

"We are finally free, and all thanks to you" said a voice behind him. When he looked at the owner of the voice, he realized she was the knight of the visions of the past. He didn´t know how, but he knew she was a spirit. "Now the city will finally be destroyed by the purifying fire. My heartfelt thanks for cleansing our curse after thousands of years, now we may rest in peace. Star of the morning, hero who has embraced godhood, inherit the light of what remains of our world and protect the weak" she said as she offered to him a ring with an amethyst. Countless spirits were appearing around him. As they kneeled, he could see that in their faces there was relieve, relieve for the end of an endless nightmare.

"May this ring protect you and allow you to return safely whence you came, mighty Lord of light" she said as she kneeled before him. The moment he put the ring on his finger a water like substance appeared in front of him. He could see through it how his students where battling against what appeared to be Solon´s forces. A pair of amethyst eyes made him smile as he approached the portal. The red star above them was quickly approaching, the heat quickly increasing.

"Farewell, proudful hero, may the light guide you for the evermore" the voices behind him said as he was engulfed in the mist of the portal

….

"You really are a group of fouls! He is dead, don´t you understand" Solon laughed. Most of their forces were behind in the rearguard she and Hubert spearheading the offensive against the enemy forces.

"You can only speak nonsense. He will come again and when he does you will regret everything you have done!" She shouted as she continued fighting when she suddenly felt a magic aura.

"It cannot be…So the Fell Star is able to overcome pure dark" Solon mumbled as a fissure started to appear in front of them, a portal starting to form in front of them. She didn´t have to look to know who was coming through it, fear turned into relieve.

The portal in front of her exploded in an immense explosion, the shockwave sending her to the ground. The light was so brilliant that her eyes hurt, but she couldn´t stop watching what was happening in front of her.

"So the Fell Star has been able of piercing through the eternal darkness. Your mere existence frightens me, but I have no other option than to fight you!" Solon shouted as around the brilliant light reserve troops and monsters started to appear. Their numbers where even greater than the ones they had been fighting until now.

"There is no need of more fighting since the battle is already over, kneel and receive the power of the sunlight" a majestic voice said from the center of the light. The moment he said those words the enemy troops except Solon suddenly paralyzed and slowly started to kneel, beasts included. "Your sins are countless and will be repaid accordingly, may your death release you from your chains" he said as spears of light fell on all of them, annihilating the enemy army with one spell. As the spell was casted the light surrounding him disappeared, revealing the figure of Byleth, although he was completely different to the one he had grown to love. His teal hair had turned into light green and even from the distance she could see the serene green eyes looking at Solon as the judge looks the prisoner before the trial.

….

"Our forces, so easily defeated" Solon muttered as he fell to the ground, pathetically trying to stay away from Byleth, which he was slowly approaching him.

"Your little tricks had been your undoing. Your plans are deemed to fail. Now reveal your secrets"

"You are a fool if you think you can make me reveal them. I will rather die, than reveal our inner hope to the star of doom!" he said as he casted a dark spell against him, but he felt nothing.

"You are misunderstanding the situation, you are going to die anyway, the only thing that will change is how long will it take" he said as he placed both of his hand on his head "Now reveal your secrets!" he commanded as Solon started to shout uncontrollably. Suddenly images of unknown places and people started to come to his mind. "I need to know the exact place, where is your kind?" he thought as he searched even deeper in the mind of Solon and suddenly a city without light came to his mind and even though he had never been there he knew its name "Shambhala" he thought as he tried to find its exact location.

….

"My Teacher, it´s over. he is already dead" Edelgard´s voice made him come to his senses. When he looked at where he was placing his hands, he realized Solon was already dead, his flesh and skull partially melted.

"You are right" he said as he released his hand from what remained of his body, the moment he did, it turned into ashes.

"What did happen to you, my Teacher? Those eyes and hair are completely different to the ones I used to see" she asked trying to keep a neutral tone, although her voice was menacing to undercover her real feelings.

When he looked at her, his eyes remained calm.

"I received the power of the Goddess" The moment he spoke those words she felt as if she was hit by pure ice. "I´ve lost him then" she thought as she briefly closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes again, she gently smiled to him, her usual mask covering her true face once again.

"The power of the Goddess? She must hold you dearly to have blessed you with her strength once again. However, I must ask you something. What will you do with such power?"

He firmly looked at her before answering.

"I will use my new powers to protect my students"

The answer made her smile a bit. "There are things that never change, I guess, I wouldn´t expect another answer from you and I appreciate that you want to protect us. However, the day may come when you won´t be able to protect everyone, when that day comes what will you do?" she asked, even though she knew that there was no point in the question anymore. However, instead of answering, Byleth fell on his knees as he collapsed to the ground.

"Byleth!" she shouted as she came to his aid. "Wait a second, he is sleeping. These new powers of him, must have exhaust him" She thought. His body was hot, but it wasn´t painful to hold, although his new appearance was still shocking her.

"Lady Edelgard, so you were there" Hubert said as he quickly approached both of them "And so there is the Professor" His expression was serious and analytical as if he were measuring every possibility. "Lady Edelgard, with due respect, we must finish him off. It is clear which sides he is now"

"Are you telling me to kill him?"

"Not by your own hand of course, since it is my duty as a member of House Vestra. I will bear all responsibilities, but this is the most logical way to solve this problematic"

"He has been our mentor for almost a year!" she said shocked to his advisor´s comment.

"And I cannot deny that I appreciate him. However, it is clear that the paths we follow are completely different. Now if you forgive me" he said as he unsheathed a small curved dagger.

"No! I command you to stop"

"Lady Edelgard…"

"It´s an order. Are you daring to disobey me?" she said with a furious look.

"Why? He is the enemy now"

"Because I love him"

Hubert drop his dagger the moment he heard her words, a horrified expression on his face. It would have been comical or even embarrassing to her, but she could only feel sadness as she said those words. "I will be the peerless emperor you wish me to be, but I won´t kill him in such defenseless state"

"It might bring doom to us"

"Our hands already have our fair share of blood, but I refuse to spill his blood. Not like this" she said as she took his body between her arms. Even though she was small she was confident of her strength. "I will bring him back to the monastery, you are free to do as you please" she said as she silently headed all the way back.

…

The sun was starting to set when they arrived to the main gates of the monastery. Torches were already lit and the elite of the knights of Seiros observed them in silence as they passed through the gates.

Before the entrance to the main hall she could see Rhea and Seteth waiting for them. The moment the archbishop realized the presence of Byleth on her back, she smiled, making her shiver.

"Our champion has safely returned to this holy place with the power of the Goddess bestowed upon him. A true hero indeed" she said as she approached them. "However, even the champion of the faith must rest, you have done well to bring him back, but your duty is over now" she said as she took hold of his body between her arms, a bitter taste left in her mouth. "Seteth, make sure that no one disturbs us" she said as she headed to her private chambers, the elite of the Church, behind her. Seteth looked at her a few seconds, before going after them, leaving her and Hubert alone in the main hall since most of the students weren´t aware yet of what had happened. When she lost sight of them, she started to walk away.

"Lady Edelgard, I must apo…"

"Not now Hubert, I wish to remain alone for the time being" she said as she left the main hall and headed to her room, the first stars of the night starting to appear in the sky.


	58. Distrust

When he opened his eyes, he could see a faint light coming through a rosette. He was still exhausted when the memories of his last battle came to his mind.

"Where am I?"

"You have nothing to worry about. You are safe here" said a soft voice next to him, soft hands caressing his hair. When he got used to the light, he could see that the person who was taking care of him was the archbishop, which was genuinely smiling to him. "You have overcome much since the day you accepted your position here. You truly are a befitting heir of our magnificent mother. Tell me, did Sothis grant you her strength?"

"Yes" he said, his mind numbed by the feeling of loss he was feeling within him.

"Indeed. Now you have inherited her fire and have turned into her champion. I can only express my eternal gratitude to your efforts. Now she is closer than ever before"

"What will I do with her powers?"

"Time will ask your questions, but you will know her will when the time comes. Sothis is like the sun, nourishing our souls like a magnificent mother as she casts the shadows of our fears away. But you must be exhausted from your long journey. Please take some rest, you have earned it" she said as she casted a small light that entered through his body, leaving him exhausted.

"Rest well. If this moment could never end…I will guard over you…eternally"

….

Torches were already lit when the herald announced his presence at the gates of the archbishop´s room. She was focused on what appeared to be a letter, but she smiled the moment she realized how he was.

"Please take a seat, dear Seteth. It must have been an exhausting day for you as well" Rhea smiled as she offered him a seat in front of her.

"Thank you" he nodded as he sat in front of her, feeling uneasy about what he was about to ask.

"Is there something bothering you?"

"I was wondering about the changes that the new Professor had just experienced"

"I thought you would be asking me something like that. It is clear that Sothis has chosen him. The will of the merciful mother is still at its apex" she said with a nostalgic smile.

"But why could she have chosen him? It is true that he is the wielder of the Crest of Flames, but such crest was only inherited by that perfidious man"

"As you know her powers greatly surpasses ours. However, even though her existence has been greatly affected by the wrongdoings of humans she has never been eradicated"

"Rhea, I´ve read Jeralt´s diary. I know that something happened to him when he was a child" he said, the moment he spoke those words Rhea´s smile froze. "Jeralt was responsible of the fire that happened more than 20 years ago and he ran away from this place, thinking that something had happened to his child; the Professor. He even said that he didn´t have a pulse. How could you explain something like that?"

"Seteth, you are misunderstanding what happened" Rhea said with a serious expression. "Do you think that I would do something to the child of my benefactor just for the sake of it? Look me in the eye and tell me what you sincerely think"

He looked at her. Her usual serene eyes had lost all warmth and were looking at him with an unseen strength. "I´ve seen those eyes a lifetime ago; in the battlefield" he thought as he carefully measured what he was about to say. "I wasn´t accusing you of any wrongdoings. I trust you and if I´m here is because I want to hear the story from your lips. Please don´t misunderstand my questions with mistrust" She paused for a moment before silently nodding at him.

"Without my intervention the child would be dead by now. I used my knowledge of magic; the ancient scrolls that mother taught to those with affinity to the arts and that knowledge was what saved the child´s life. The legacy of the merciful mother has awakened within him; those changes are just the proof that mother has blessed him with her power"

"A forbidden ritual?" he inquired

"Seteth, I love you and your daughter as if you were my own children, but I won´t tolerate such impertinent questions"

"I apologize, I didn´t mean to disrespect"

"He will be the herald of a new age for the entire Fódlan. I´m planning to bring him to the Throne Room. If he is truly the champion, he will receive a vision from our mother.

"The Throne Room? Thousands of years have passed since someone stepped on such place. Would it be safe?"

"Don´t worry, with my presence there is nothing to fear" she smiled back. "Talking about a different matter, the rebellion of the west church hasn´t been crushed yet. Those misguided souls are still willing to embrace a legacy of lies"

"They don´t have a proper army, but they have mastered the art of the guerrilla. The land over there is filled with marshes and forests and fog is frequently present. Our troops had difficulty finding them, since they disappear as they strike our forces, but we have defeated countless"

"As long as the head remains, they will continue fighting. I´ll personally intervene to resolve such matter. They will certainly try to ambush me, if they hear that the archbishop of the Church is going to the West"

"Such strategy could backfire badly. I´m highly opposed to such strategy"

"You don´t have to worry, Catherine and my personal guard will accompany me and I will certainly ask the Professor for his protection. With their presence there is nothing to fear from the shatters of the western Church. Our group would be certainly bigger than what I planned. Prince heir Dimitri has asked for help to avoid a bloodbath in Duscur and will accompany us until he reaches his destination. As the future successor of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus is of critical importance that he remains on good terms with the Church so I´ve decided to aid him with everything I can. Taking into account the nature of the Professor I doubt he would refuse helping a student in distress"

"The western church is also menacing to take control of the ancient relics of our people. They are well protected with magic devices, but I fear the problems they could cause if they are able to manipulate such weapons. They might not be as powerful as hero relics, but those weapons would be able to tear apart armies of well-trained soldiers"

"In that case, you are free to accompany us. It will be a pleasure to recall the battles of old with you by my side. If everything goes smoothly, we will have finally gotten rid of the last rotten apples of the Western Church. I won´t stop until we crush the rebellion. The people must understand that those who derail from that path of true virtue deserve nothing but death"

Hearing her words, it was difficult to separate her true self from the persona she had been using for the last centuries, although the same could be said about him. "Even our names are just lies that we tell to each other until we forgot that we are deceiving ourselves" he thought.

"I will be prepared for the time we leave this place. I will do my best to resolve this matter" he nodded as he prepared to leave, although doubts remained about what was the true nature of the Professor. Being able to wield a crestless weapon was something he could have never imagined. "Is this the true power of the Goddess?" he wondered.

"Seteth"

"Yes Rhea?"

"Bring me the diary. We must make sure that it doesn´t fall on the hands of the faint hearted"

"Understood" he nodded as he closed the doors behind him. There was no point on questioning her authority, although what had happened to him still remained in the shadows. "Perhaps the expedition will help me discover the truth beneath" he thought as he headed to Jeralt´s room. He had known her for ages, but he knew that deep within her a deep melancholy remained. He had suffered as well, losing a wife, yet as long as he had Flayn he knew he could keep walking forward. He couldn´t say the same about Rhea. She was still longing for a past that was already gone, but he knew that her burdens were heavy even though she welcomed their return with smiles decades ago. "I will need to keep an eye on the Professor" he said to himself as he searched for the diary that had changed his view about many things.

…

**1/15 Guardian Moon**

"The Goddess has answered to our needs and has granted his champion her power" Rhea´s voice amplified by magic said, her voice reaching the entire cathedral. "Her magnificence has been bestowed upon him and with her power the enemies of the faith will live in eternal fear" she continued. The professor was kneeling before her in front of the altar.

All the students were attending the ceremony, although the reactions varied significantly from student to student. Mercedes or Marianne were filled with devotion. Others like Sylvain or Ferdinand were simply surprised, but she could sense concern in Lysithea´s expression. The only one that appeared to be completely neutral was Claude, which still had his easy-going smile, although his eyes were telling otherwise. "And what do I feel?" she wondered. "Despair" answered a little voice inside her head, but she continued observing, pretending to being enjoying what was happening.

"You came here as a mercenary. A warrior without clear alliances, but the Goddess in her infinite wisdom has chosen you among countless warriors. First by the Sword of the Creator, the gift that the Goddess herself gave to Nemesis, the king of liberation before his heart grew dark. However, you have used the sword to defend the weak, fulfilling the Goddess´s will and because of it the Goddess has chosen you as her champion; the champion of the faith and protector of the weak. Do you promise to fulfil the Goddess´s will and protect those pure of heart in peril?"

"I will"

"In that case rise again, not as a mere warrior but as the champion of everything that is sacred. May you fulfill the Goddess´s will until your last breath" Rhea´s voice announced as she casted a golden spell upon him. Unsheathing the Sword of the Creator, the light was trapped within it as the light grew even brighter, temporarily blinding those who were in the front seats. "May all of you peace discover" the archbishop said; the ceremony finally coming to an end.

"Hey Edelgard, how are you doing?" Claude said as he approached her with a smile on his face.

"You are really talented; being able to keep your smile in every situation"

"You could learn that from me. This year a lot of strange things have happened, but I didn´t expect that Teach would change like that"

"If you are wondering why he has changed, I don´t know anything about it"

"Edelgard is right, Claude. I´ve already told you. The Professor was engulfed by a magic mist and then he disappeared. We were battling against Solon´s army when an explosion happened and then the Professor appeared again. He was already like that when he reappeared"

"No matter how many times I heard that, it is very difficult to believe" he said scratching his head. "The archbishop seems extremely happy though"

Rhea was still talking with the Professor, surrounded by her faithful. A few meters from them Seteth was looking at them as if he was thinking about something. Ever since she had taken him from her back, she had been extremely overprotective about him, but she could do nothing to stop her.

"Well, after her discourse it is obvious, she is pleased by the recent events"

"I guess so. Oh, your Highness, are you willing to have a jolly reunion with us in this sacred place?"

"I will never know how you can be so relaxed every time Claude" Dimitri sighed. He appeared to have lost some sleep, eye bags contrasting with his blue eyes that grew harsher when they stopped on her. "Although I must admit that I´m intrigued with the events of the last months. Solon has paid for his crimes, but there are still threats that are menacing us, the Flame Emperor must be up to something. We don´t know what is he up to. Don´t you think, Edelgard?" he asked with an inquisitive look.

"I´m glad to see the three house leaders here" Rhea interrupted their conversation accompanied by Byleth. "Dimitri, you appear to be exhausted. I hope you can find some rest soon"

"Don´t worry, Lady Rhea. I will certainly do so after I resolve these lingering matters. I appreciate your help. I will certainly remember it when I turn into the next king of Faerghus" Dimitri then looked to both of them. "A rebellion is rising in Duscur. As all of you should know, Duscur was annexed to the Holy Kingdom after the events of the tragedy. However, a new uprising is happening in these territories. I wish to stop any future bloodbath and I asked for help to solve this matter.

"There is also the matter of the Western Church that has remained unresolved until now. I wish to settle that problem once and for all with the help of the forces of the Church and the Professor"

"If the Professor is ok with it, we have no reason to oppose. I will be telling the rest of the students of our house then" she nodded.

"Wait a second. If the Black Eagles and the Blue Lions are leaving why not letting us let a hand too?"

"The use of three houses for such matter would be excessive. Furthermore, leaving the monastery unprotected would be unwise. Alois has insisted on having you around here to make sure that the monastery remains safe. It is a responsibility of great honor" Seteth said approaching them.

"That must be because I once told him that his jokes were funny, but I guess he didn´t catch the irony behind my words" he sighed. "Understood, I will be a good house leader and make sure that everyone keeps the monastery safe"

"I am counting with your efforts" Rhea smiled. "We will leave tomorrow morning. The roads to the west are difficult to transit and even more now after the open rebellion, but this problem has been lingering for too long. I will return to my private chambers now. I wish all of you a fruitful day" she said as she left accompanied by Seteth and the rest of her bodyguards.

"We will be ready; I will tell the students of my house" Dimitri quickly nodded as he left the place behind. Claude did the same sighing while Lysithea lectured him on how unfit he was as a house leader, constantly skipping his duties. By then they were the two of them left alone, an uncomfortable silence falling upon them. No matter how much she looked at him, she could never get used to the new changes that had happened to him.

"Is there something bothering you, Edelgard?"

"Forgive me. It´s just that I can´t get used to your new appearance"

"No matter how much I´ve changed I still remain the same. So, don´t hesitate to treat me as you did before" he said smiling to her. His smile was always a blessing, but each time he looked at his deep emerald eyes, she could only feel regret and uneasiness.

"Even if some people might change until they are unrecognizable you truly remain the same. I admire that side of you" she faintly smiled. "Are your forces recovered?"

"Don´t worry, I´m already fine. Thanks for worrying about my wellbeing"

"I think the archbishop should have let you more time to rest, although I must admit that it is surprising that the rebellion of the western church has lasted for so long. Isn´t it surprising to you, that even now they continue fighting against the almighty Church? Lord Lonato fought against our forces even though he knew it was a hopeless battle and he had the support of his people and even now to the west they continue to fight because they believe in the cause they are fighting for. Such conviction is something worthy to reckon"

"I remember your words back at the day and now that I know you better, I can understand why you feel so identified with that way of thinking"

"Sometimes you need to give everything you have for the things you believe in. Did you know that there was once the southern Church of Fódlan? Their leaders conspired against the Emperor of that time and the southern Church was dissolved. Even the rulers of the faith can be misguided by their own ambitions and that is not an exception of the different branches of the Church. What I´m trying to say is that you can´t classify everyone into black and white categories or your actions will be misguided. I don´t think that the western Church is rebelling because they are evil, but because they think that what they are fighting for is something worth of believing"

"I know that not everyone acts for the sake of being evil, but if I have to kill people to protect all of you, so be it. When I was a mercenary we fought for worse causes, but that doesn´t mind that I don´t have any morals"

She knew that he meant what he was saying. Gathering her strength, he looked at him once again.

"I believe your words. Being with you all this time has allowed me to forget about the chains of my duty from time to time and I´m really grateful to you because of it. After these expeditions end, I want to ask you a favor. Would you accompany me to Enbarr? I need to resolve an important matter there, but I haven´t forgotten the promise I made to you. I really wish you could accompany me when this matter is resolved"

"It would be an honor" he smiled as he patted her head. It has been a while since the last time he had done that to her, but she felt somehow relaxed because of it.

"Even if I change, please remain like this. This is what I like about you, after all" she genuinely smiled for a moment.

…..

Most of the students were already waiting at the main gates of the monastery. Apart from them, he could see the knights of Seiros that would accompany them. Most of them were already wearing their heavy armors; the emblem of the Church on their shields. "It seems that the Church wants to get rid of this resistance once and for all" he thought. He wondered what Sothis would have said about it, melancholy spreading within him. "Your sacrifice won´t be in vain, my friend. I promise" he said to himself as he approached his dear students.

"Good morning, my Teacher. As you can see, we are already ready to leave this place" Edelgard greeted him, a combat axe on her back.

"Another opportunity to proof myself how much I´ve improved as warrior, hell yeah!"

"No matter how much you will improve you will still lack the most important skill of your life; to remain silent"

"Being silence is truly an important skill for all kind of jobs" Hubert chuckled, although he avoided his sight when his eyes met.

"I wonder what kind of powers have awakened within the Professor" Ferdinand said with a thoughtful look. "No matter how powerful you are my admiration for you will never change. Meeting you has been an invaluable blessing"

"Ferdie, you sound more mature. It seems that even you can change" Dorothea giggled. "I have the same opinion. Even if your appearance changes, you are still our dear Professor"

"In Brigid the stronger you get the more marks that are drawn on you skin. If I get as strong as you I´m sure that my body will be completely covered by victory marks!"

"That would be a shame though, Petra"

"Only a bit more and the school year will end, but if it ends, I will have to return to my father´s place. No matter what path I choose it´s going to be scary!"

"If your father gets too scary, I will teach him a lesson, dear Bernadetta" Dorothea said with a gentle smile.

"Now the Professor looks so similar to me. You could say that we are siblings now"

"Aren´t you satisfied with having me as a brother, Flayn?" asked a slightly disappointed Seteth. With him came Rhea and the students of the Blue Lions.

"The instability of Faerghus is embarrassing, but I thank you sincerely for aiding me once again" Dimitri said as he nodded at him.

"You are my student as well"

"You are too nice for your own good, Professor. Girls prefer bad guys that give some flavor to their lives" Sylvain laughed as he checked his hair in front of one of the armors.

"Being a prick isn´t the way to conquer someone´s heart, Sylvain. That´s why you always fail miserably"

"Ingrid, those words hurt more than Felix´s sword, no need to be so harsh" Sylvain sighed.

"Since our group is big, we will need to have scouts to be sure that we spot the enemy before the enemy detects us. We will need wyvern riders to fulfill such role" Seteth said as he showed him a group of such magnificent beasts. "Wyverns have higher resistance than Pegasi and they can cover wider areas. I will ride one of them, but feel free to use the rest with your students. Lady Rhea will travel with our ground troops. Even being as cautious as we are it´s only a matter of time that they know that we are coming for them, but before that happens, we have to make sure that there is no other place where they can run away"

"Understood. I will ride one of them" he then looked at his students. "Edelgard, Petra and Ingrid will ride the others. The rest, please ride one of the horses. We will be using them until we arrive to the woods"

As he prepared himself to ride his new companion the archbishop came closer.

"It is going to be the first time that we travel together to fight the enemies of the Church. I have shared many times such experience with you father. I have the hope that I can count on you from now on"

"I will do everything for their safety and you saved his life once" he said as he put himself on the back of the beast. The wyvern roared ferociously as it tried to resist the presence of its new rider, but after a few more roars it finally calmed down, its head aiming to the skies.

"Let´s leave this place already!" he shouted as soldiers with trumpets marked their departing. In a few seconds he was already in the middle of the blue sky, the monastery growing smaller behind him. Flying in such a beast was a refreshing experience after everything he had experienced the last weeks.

"The air is certainly purer the higher you fly. I´ve already forgotten how wonderful is to feel such freedom" said a voice next to him. Edelgard was riding the other wyvern with a smile on her face. Seeing her mastering a beast like that made him smile.

"You have already mastered the art of flying. Pegasus or wyvern, it doesn´t matter. As long as you have wings you will reach every distant peak" he said as he ordered his wyvern to fly even higher. The sound of another pair of flapping wings behind him made him smile as they headed west, the sun leading their path in the distance.


	59. The ashes of faith

**1/18 Guardian Moon**

"The weather is so humid. It has been raining for days. When is it going to end?" Dorothea complained as they continued their march. Visibility was poor so they were riding their wyverns and pegasi next to their main column. Rhea had casted a magic barrier that protected them from the rain, but he could feel the humidity in the air.

"Well, at least it isn´t a swamp" Linhardt said with a small flame on his right hand. "At least this is natural rain, if it was someone casting a spell on us would be more troublesome"

"It is like this every year. However, when the season of rains stops the views are truly beautiful. Seeing the world from the peak of the archdeacon it´s truly an impressive view" Dimitri said as he rode next to him.

"That´s the life in the north and west. Snow and rain, and when you are fed up with it, more snow" Sylvain laughed. "With such weather one misses a bit of warmth"

"You are just trying to sneak into someone´s else's room" Ingrid said as she menacingly prepared her fists.

"I plea no guilty, I wasn´t thinking anything weird this time, I promise!"

"This time? No matter what you say, you are only making it look worse"

Protected from the rain, he couldn´t avoid smiling to their chattering, although there was someone with a serious expression on his face. Since the start of their trip to the west, Ashe has been extremely serious, even melancholic, although he couldn´t really blame him. After all that had happened, they were returning to the west to get rid of those who had instigated Lord Lonato´s rebellion in vain.

"At least this time we have some protection from the elements" Edelgard commented next to him. Beneath her clothes he could see her battle armor, the eagle of the Adrestian Empire drawn on it with vivid colors. "Even though months have already passed since then, we are finally coming again to this place. Although we can criticize them by their methods, there is no denying that they are really fighting for their ideals"

"What is the purpose of such ideals if they lead to nothing but suffering?" Dimitri joined the conversation with a disapproving look. "The world will only change for the better when we stay together and overcome our hardships. That´s what I believe in"

"Do you really think that the world will really change out of the good will of the people? Don´t you think that some people won´t change for the better, unless being forced to do so?"

"Yes, because I believe in the good will of people. If you distrust everyone, you will find yourself with a sour taste in your mouth for the rest of your life"

"Calm down, both of you" he said as he stood between both of them. By the way they were looking at each other they appeared to be willing to continue arguing, but they finally calmed down.

"Forgive me, Professor, Edelgard. I wasn´t in the mood and I was too harsh with my words"

"Don´t worry Dimitri, it´s always a pleasure to share different opinions. This way I know more about you the same way you know more about me"

"Let´s talk about a different topic then. This part of Fódlan has always been quite rainy and there is quite an interesting legend behind it. Thousands of years ago, this region was ruled by worshippers of the dark, the land scorched by its misguided inhabitants. The once prosperous land was turned into nothing but dust, but some of its inhabitants begged for divine help. One day, the sky turned black and an endless storm got rid of those who had been terrorizing the land for too long. Life prospered once again and the frequent rains are just a reminder of what happened thousands of years ago"

"Even though so much time has already passed, it is surprising that such tales have continued for so long" Edelgard said with an analytical look.

"It is part of the old believes of these lands, although there is no proper evidence about it"

"We have similar stories in Duscur. In ancient times the demon of the black sea and the king of the white flames clashed against each other, destroying the land around them until the goddess of the skies appeared and sent both forces to sleep. Then the goddess of the sky created the mountains to contain the deep sea and bury the white flames and like this the region of Duscur was created"

"Black sea and white flames" he thought. He had seen something like that in dreams, in which appeared to be a lifetime ago. He wondered if Sothis would know something about it. It was interesting that something that had happened in his dreams could be similar to a story he had never heard before.

"That´s such an interesting story, Dedue. Your people truly have a culture completely different to Fódlan"

"The goddess of the sky… Could it be the Goddess worshipped in the land of Fódlan?" Edelgard asked with a thoughtful look.

"It could be, in Duscur we are polytheists. Every element of nature is controlled by a god or goddess. There is the god of errands, the god of the mountains, the god of the trees…Anyway, all of it is going to disappear"

"Dedue, don´t say something like that, we are going to save your people. I won´t allow the forces of my uncle to cause any more sufferings to your people. I will make sure that Duscur remains at peace. Killing an entire population just for the crimes of a few…how infuriating"

"We will protect all of them, I promise you, Dedue"

"Your highness…I mean Dimitri, Professor, you have my eternal gratitude. Let´s finish this first so we can head to the north as soon as possible" Dedue said with an unusual smile.

…..

"The enemy is close so be sure to be cautious from now on. Now rest" Seteth said in front of them before entering his own tent. The forces of the Church had already prepared the camp, guards at their perimeter. He didn´t feel tired so he decided to walk to one of the hills closest to their camp. The rain had already stopped by then and luckily enough the soil around one of the trees was dry enough for him to sit down on it.

Stars were all over him, the scent of the nature around him was making him recall of his former life.

"I wonder is he is observing me from over there" he wondered as he observed the skies. The teachings of the Goddess said that those who died were received by the Goddess, but he knew it must be a lie, although the fact that he was able to speak with his mother once made him wonder where they could have gone.

"The past is clear and the present is unstable, but the territory of the unknown is clearly the future" he thought. What would do after the scholar year came to an end? It was clear that the archbishop´s desire was that he stayed at the monastery and he was sure that he would come to enjoy his future students…yet he felt that his time to continue his path was approaching.

"So, you were there, can I accompany you?"

"I thought you would be sleeping by now"

"Certainly, I should, but I don´t feel that tired" Edelgard said, sitting next to him. "Time passes really quickly, although it still feels like yesterday when we first met. Since then, lots of things have happened, yet we have overcome all of them. It certainly has been a unique experience that I´ll remember for the rest of my life. It´s a pity that it ends so soon. Just when I´m getting used to it, the duty calls me back. Will you stay at the monastery?"

"I think that I will start a new journey. You are free to accompany me if you want to. How about we travel together? The two of us. I could show you the places of my stories. There are plenty of places you should see with your very own eyes or you will regret it for your entire life" Even though he knew it was an impossible proposal he felt he needed to say it.

"It surely sounds like a tempting plan, but I´m sure that Hubert would oppose such idea. He would say something like "Your majesty, instead of spending your time daydreaming you should be signing these papers up, or hearing the complains of our noble lords"

"That sounds like a job appropriate for Ferdinand" When he said those words, Edelgard couldn´t avoid laughing. Seeing her laughing was quite a rare sight. To be fair he didn´t know if he had seen her laugh at all. Hearing that made him feel good.

"It´s unusual from you to criticize one of your students, but I could imagine the situation" Edelgard smiled. "If I have time, I would certainly accompany you. Time…The thing I lack the most…Anyway, I hope that we don´t have more problems from now on"

"I really hope so. At least for the time being it seems that we will have a better weather" he then looked to the guards at the base of the hill. "I think we should return already. I don´t want you to get scorned because of my fault"

"In that case, could you accompany me?" she said as she offered him her arm.

"Always" he smiled, accepting hers.

The guards said nothing when they saw them appear in front of them. The tents were already silent, only the sound of the horses and beasts could be heard in the inner area of the camp.

"Rest well, make sure that no one of them oversleeps" he said as he reluctantly let her go.

"Don't worry, I will make sure that all of them are prepared for tomorrow. Thank you for accompanying me, Byleth"

Hearing his name from her lips made him smile as he headed to his own tent.

"Are you having problems to sleep as well?" Seteth asked. He was sitting next to what remained of one of the bonfires. He didn´t appear to be tired, his green eyes piercing his.

"I don´t feel tired at all, and you?"

"You should try to get some sleep, anyway. The lack of sleep could numb your senses. Although, in this case I´m not the one I should be giving such counseling" he said as he stood up. "Our clash with the western Church will happen in a short while. They must have realized our presence by now. Tell me, why do you think they are continuing such hopeless crusade against the main church?"

"They may think that the central Church is wicked"

"Is it, though? What makes something be evil? The answer will change depending on the person. They may accuse the central Church, yet they are blind about their own mistakes. History teaches us that most decisions aren´t made based on moral terms, but on the political gain they can grant to those with power. This region has already suffered under their rule. It is the time to stop it. Forgive me for my words, Professor. You could say I was thinking aloud. I hope you can get enough rest. I don´t want you to underperform in front of Flayn. Since this will be our first battle together, I will make sure to keep an eye on both of you"

"I will protect her as well as the rest of the students. You don´t have anything to worry about"

"You really mean what you say" Seteth shortly smiled. "See you at dawn them" he said as he headed to his own tent, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

…..

**1/19**

The mist around them was thick enough to block their sight a few meters ahead from them. The place was completely silent, but he knew that his enemies weren´t far ahead.

"They must have prepared an ambush" Catherine muttered beside him.

"This time will be different. It is clear than I am the objective and they must have heard of our arrival. Let them come closer"

"Lady Rhea, that would be too dangerous, what about your safety?"

"Faith is my only shield, a shield that can withstand everything. Their minds and hearts have been misguided. The Goddess doesn´t protect those who oppose her teachings. Besides, the champion of the Goddess is next to me" Rhea smiled as she put her hand on his shoulder. "The merciful mother is the creator of all things, from the endless sky to the deeps of the land. However, the ancient scrolls say that Sothis had a higher affinity with water. Water is a powerful element; all beings need it to survive like the sun in the sky. It gifts us with life yet its fury is capable of devastating cities, engulfing the creation of men. This mist is nothing compared to such power, don´t you think Byleth?

Their faith is weak so they don´t have the blessing of the Goddess…but you… You were able to overcome every trial that has been in front of you. You are the rightful heir of her powers. Please cast aside this mist with the blessing of the Goddess" she said as she extended her arms.

Looking at his surroundings he wasn´t too sure about what he should do, but he imitated her and closed his eyes. He could feel the power of Sothis inside him, waiting to be released. Feeling an increasing heat in his hands, he extended his arms and as he did so a potent light left both of his hands, the mist completely disappearing around them.

"What happened to the mist!?" asked one of the enemy soldiers a few meters from them.

"Those who have abused the trust of the Goddess are bound to suffer her punishments. Only a heretic would decide to remain in the shadows and now you will pay the price of your treachery" Rhea said as with a silent movement of her hands she commanded the elite of the knights of Seiros to charge at the front line of their enemy.

"Take battles positions now!" he shouted as he leaded his students in the charge to the flanks. Even though they had lost the covering of the mist, the soldiers of the western church were enemies with plenty of experience on the battlefield and they were keeping their lines in order.

"Flying units, attack from the flanks!" he commanded as he released a potent fire spell. The explosion engulfed several of the enemy soldiers in green flames and allowed their ground units to secure a more advantageous position. After receiving the powers of Sothis, he had realized that most of his spells were more powerful than ever before so he needed to be more careful to avoid causing any harm to his students.

"So, the holy whore is sending their slaves to fight against us. If so blessed you are by the Goddess why do you refuse to engage in combat?" shouted what appeared to be the leader of the western church forces.

"That statement is devoid of sense coming from someone that chooses to fight in the shadows. If you seek to provoke me then your purpose is fruitless" Rhea said with a serene gaze. "You will die today; it would be wiser to spend the remaining time of your life asking for mercy to our pious mother"

"Don´t use her name in vain. You cover yourself in holy clothes, yet your heart is utterly rotted. I will crush you!" The man shouted as reinforcements came from the forest. The western Church forces were welcomed by a rain of arrows and spells, leading the attack he tried to approach their leader, cutting through their forces.

"Is that a hero relic? Using such weaponry is against the rule of the Goddess!"

"What is against the rule of the Goddess is raising in arms against her" said Rhea´s voice amplified by magic.

The elite of the western Church was guarding the leader of their leader. Most of them were wearing heavy armor and some of them were even casting spells against him. Feeling an itching in his sword hand, he realized that the Sword of the Creator was glowing. He didn´t know exactly why, but he knew what he had to do. Two handing the weapon, he drove the sword in the ground.

And then true hell was released around him. Green flames engulfed the elite of the knights of the western Church, their cries resonating in his ears. In a few seconds the flames extinguished, but he looked shocked at what he had done. The only thing that remain of the soldiers guarding their leader was melted helmets and pieces of irons, their bodies turned into ash by the heat of the flames.

"Is all this power mine now?" he wondered horrified to what he had done.

"What had just happened?" said the leader of the western Church while coughing, his eyes watching the destruction in front of him in disbelief.

"The Goddess doesn´t favor you anymore. Your dirty deeds have made the Goddess feel disappointed in you" Rhea said as she approached the scorched land, the moment she looked at him, she genuinely smiled. "You truly are her champion. Words cannot express my gratitude for your services to our merciful mother, but for now, we need to resolve this matter once and for all" she said as she casted magical ropes around the leader of the western Church.

Around them the fight was already coming to an end. With their leader captured and the elite of the forces utterly destroyed, the fighting spirit of the standard soldiers of the western Church was quickly fading away. Some of them tried to run away but were killed in the process as well as those who continued to resist. Those who surrendered were made prisoners by their forces.

Their students were exhausted but were out of any danger. He wanted to celebrate with them their victory, but he had fear he could harm them. Looking at the Sword of the Creator he decided to sheathe it. "For the rest of this journey I will rely on standard weapons. I wouldn´t forgive myself if something happened to them" he thought as he observed his students in silence.

"The explosion that happened before…Was of your making?" asked Seteth as he carefully approached him. He was wearing a wyvern Lord armor, but by the way he moved his movements didn´t appear to be slowed down by it.

"It was"

Seteth was looking at him in completely silent as he nodded.

"It seems that the elite of the western Church met its end by a single move of the Sword of the Creator. Such powerful move must have certainly saved lives, but it would be advisable to avoid abusing its power. You are a skillful warrior and we don´t know to what extend a crestless sword differs from other relics"

"You are right, now that the battle is over, I will try to use standard weapons for the rest of the journey"

"Understood" he nodded. "It seems that Lady Rhea is waiting for us. We should meet her at once" he said as he continued walking past him. With no other option he followed him.

….

"You are just a dirty wench that is misusing the name of the Goddess in vain! How long are you going to keep with this farce, you dirty whore?" A man wearing cardinal clothes said as he tried to freed himself from the grip of the central church soldiers.

"Talking in such manner to the head of the Church is a blasphemy, although a small one compared to the crimes you have already committed" Rhea said with a soft voice, although he could sense the threat hiding behind her smile.

"Do you mean our rebellion? There are some things that are worth fighting for. I regret nothing of what I´ve done. Neither my men. Our eyes had been opened by the truth, the truth of what you are, you are just…" he couldn´t continue as he was punched by one of the knights of the Church, teeth falling on the ground. "You really think that hitting me will hide the truth? You can kill me, I´m sure you are willing to do so. But the only thing that you would achieve with that is show to the world how scared you are. Violence will only create more violence in an eternal cycle. This is the world where we live in"

"As long as the Church stays strong, the world will be kept at peace. It is the duty of the Church to be the guardian of this world, Saint Seiros herself said so hundreds of years ago. However, despite of the importance of such mission you have betrayed the trust of our merciful mother. The Goddess is saddened by the misuse you have done of her message to this world. Opposing our pious mother is an unforgivable crime that will be punished accordingly" Rhea said with a serene gaze. She then looked to one of her soldiers. "Bring them to the pyres"

The leader of the Western Church continued cursing them as he was carried to the execution place, although some of their allies weren´t so brave. Some of them were sobbing and some of them were completely expressionless.

"Those are already dead" he thought as he looked at them. He had seen countless people die in front of him, but executions were never a comfortable sight. "It´s a shameful way of leaving this world, deprived of an honorable death" he thought as one of the high ranked officials of the western Church begged for mercy, but he was welcomed with a punch in the stomach before continuing his path to his death.

"All of you have broken the Covenant of the Holy Church of Seiros. As you should know, the punishment for your sins can only be forgiven by your death. The merciful Goddess believes that the flames of torment can erase even the most terrible crimes. Your flesh will turn into ash, but your soul will be purer than ever before and perhaps one day you will be able to see the magnificence of our creator" Rhea continued as the Church forces placed tree branches and tied them to wooden poles.

"I believe in the existence of the Goddess, but I don´t believe your words. Your legacy is a lie that will turn into ash. These are my words, archbishop. You might find pleasure in killing me, but I will be laughing in hell when your tyranny ends. Even if I fall some others will raise again. It´s just a matter of time"

"They will fall as well. Your heresy makes you speak nonsense. The faith is strong in me and I was chosen rightfully by the heart of the Holy Church. It is obvious that your heretic behavior has made you insane, but perhaps these flames will enlighten you" Rhea said as she casted a fire spell on the lower level of the pillar. Covered in oil the fire quickly extended and started to bite the flesh of those fated to die.

"Even if it was a great fight, I don´t feel well at all" Caspar muttered as the cries of the prisoners filled the air, accompanied by the smell of burning flesh. Their students had approached them after the end of the battle, although their healers were attending the soldiers of the Church that had sustained injuries during the battle.

"I think I´ve had enough battle experiences for the rest of my life, now if you excuse me, I´m not feeling that well" Linhardt said as he ran away to the woods.

Looking at the faces of his students, most of them appeared to be displeased by what was happening, although it wasn´t an uncommon sight. There were some places were even harsher punishments were practiced, although he could understand why the cries of the ones dying could make them feel uncomfortable. Only two students appeared to be completely unaffected by the public execution. One of them was Hubert, who was observing the scene in silence, his eyes carefully observing every detail. The other one was Dedue, who was standing next to Dimitri, his face made out of stone.

"Do you really think that the Goddess would be pleased of seeing this? In the name of kings, lords and the Goddess countless crimes have been made, but the teachings of the Goddess always believe in the good faith of humans. This has nothing to do with that, don´t you think, my Teacher?" Edelgard said as she continued watching the scene. Even though her gaze serene, she could see tension in her hands.

Thinking about Sothis, he knew that she wouldn´t be pleased by something like that. It was true that the teachings of the Goddess always tried to forgive the mistakes of nobles and common folk alike, but the punishments were way crueler to those that were member of the Church.

"I don´t think she would be pleased by this" he admitted.

"Then we think alike. I´m glad to hear that from you. Even if you have received the blessing of the Goddess, it is obvious that you are able to understand the reality far better than those that insist on interpreting the will of the Goddess. Sometimes I wonder if the Goddess really exists… Forgive me, it is obvious that her existence is real if you have earned her powers, yet the world around me makes me wonder what is true and what is not"

Both of them remained silent as the smell of burnt flesh infested the air. After a while the cries stopped and the forces of the Church started to prepare the final resting place of those who had opposed them for so long. No honors were given to them as they were buried together in the same place because they had opposed the teachings of the merciful mother. As heretics their tomb was marked with a red star as Rhea placed a small statue of each saint around it.

"The punishment that awaits them is harsh. The purgatory has never been a gentle place to stay. However, I have the hope that one day their spirits will be able to find true peace. Justice is harsh, but not without a reason. If we let our inner desires drive our actions the blade of justice will put an end to our lives. That was the fatal mistake that they did; to oppose the teaching of the Goddess for banal reasons. Until then the only thing we can do for them is praying for their souls and for a world where such crimes aren´t committed anymore" she then approached him with a gentle smile. "I am afraid that I will have to stay here for a few days to make sure that everything remains under control. Seteth will lead the rest of the forces to the north. The Church will come in aid of Prince Dimitri as well"

"Will you be ok by your own?"

"There is no need to worry about my safety. Catherine will remain with me. She is worth an army of full trained soldiers. With your presence in the battlefield I am sure there is nothing to fear, but I will pray for your safe return until then" she smiled, before leaving the place accompanied by Catherine, which quickly nodded to him, before following Rhea.

The rest of the students and their forces were already prepared to continue their path. The inhabitants of the surroundings have observed the execution in complete silence, but as they left, they bowed to them, before they returned to their duties. There wasn´t any hostility in their eyes as if a new lord for their land was nothing to be surprised about.

"As commoners they must be accustomed to such practices" he thought as he leaded the march of his students as Seteth did the same with the Church forces. The rules were the same for lords and peasants, but it was a rare sight to see a lord executed. Most of the time they were able to avoid certain death by bribes or their status granted them special privileges that were beyond reach for those born in the common folk. Even rarer was the execution of a high rank official of the Church. The members of the Church were highly respected by their communities and only the worst crimes could justify their execution.

After a few hours of riding the forest started to grew scarcer around them. A gentle breeze was coming from the north, although the snow of the area has already melted a few weeks ago.

"Our next objective will be to get rid of the remnants of the Western Church in the holy tombs of the saints. There is a sanctuary next to the coast where the Saints of old are worshipped. The weapons of those heroes of old are there. Their relics must be protected at all costs, to avoid further problems within this forsaken region" Seteth said as he approached him. "Please, tell your students to be prepared. Even if we had defeated the core of the rebellion once and for all, they will certainly be a tough nut to crack. It is ironic that is their faith in those misguided believes what they make them fight for the bitter end. Faith…such a difficult to explain concept, don´t you think Professor?"

"It is" he was surprised to see a so talkative Seteth, but he didn´t mind. In fact, he was glad that he was slowly opening to him.

"For the Church, having faith in the Goddess is the most important thing, but don´t confuse faith with fanatism. There is room to dissent, but an open rebellion will be certainly not be allowed. I haven´t forgotten that you are my benefactor. If it weren´t for you, only the Goddess knows what could have happened to Flayn"


	60. A true Knight

**1/21 Guardian Moon**

"We are about to arrive to our destination, we must be careful from now on, Professor" Seteth said as he checked his wyvern. Their scouts have spotted the location of the beach where the last forces of the western Church were, but if they wanted to caught them by surprised it was advisable to keep their flying units next to the rest of their army. "That area is filled with strong magic so we could teleport easily to our next destination after we resolve this matter once and for all"

"Is it because of the power contained in the Saint´s graves?"

"Not only that, but their final resting place also contains powerful weapons. Luckily enough, there are no signs that the seal of their tombs had been broken so they won´t have an advantage over us"

"Even if that´s the case we can´t overcommit" he could already feel the scent of the sea close to them. "The sand would slow down the advance of our forces if we use heavy mounts. We´ll use our flying units instead to get rid of those who can attack us from the distance while our main forces secure the objectives, understood?" he asked as he checked his students. They were already wearing their battle equipment. By the look on their faces they were already used to battling after all their expeditions.

"Understood!" The confidence in their voices made him smile.

…..

"How you dare to profane this sacred place? Spilling blood in this blessed area is a sin against the Goddess!" shouted what appeared to be one of the high ranked officials of the western Church. Corpses were scattered around the dunes and the waves have turned red, but their forces were steadily annihilating the resistance of their enemy.

"The ones that started all this mess are you!" Seteth shouted as he attacked another group of western Church soldier from the heights. "If you are so scared of spilling blood in this place you wouldn´t have started this nonsense of rebellion"

"You are just a bunch of heretics! We know about your lies, there is no other way around but to fight!"

"In that case I accept your challenge, but don´t complain if I don´t go easy on you" Seteth said as he prepared another attack with his wyvern.

A magic spell exploded a few meters from him, clouding his vision for a few seconds. Using his senses, he casted a fire spell in the direction whence the attack came, a few seconds later the cries of the enemy could be heard.

"It´s so embarrassing that the mess in which the kingdom finds itself is because of people like this" Dimitri said next to him as he defeated another enemy.

"This is not the time to lament, Dimitri. We need to keep forward or nothing will change" Edelgard said from the heights as she accompanied Petra and Ingrid in an aerial attack.

Even though the terrain was slowing them down, the forces of the western Church weren´t prepared for it. As they continued pressing forward, they divided the enemy forces in two; a group surrounded by the western sea of Fódlan and another that was using the watchtowers of the area to attack them from the distance.

"Ugh, I got hit" Caspar complained when an arrow from one of the watchtowers hit him in the shoulder.

"Calm down for a second, Caspar. I got you" Linhardt said as he casted a healing spell. "How troublesome, do we have to climb that watchtower to get rid of them?"

"Not necessarily" Hubert grinned. "Professor, please help me casting a spell against the watchtower" he said as he extended his arms. Canalizing his energy, he did the same, releasing a potent spell that engulfed the ceiling of the watchtower in flames.

"From the distance it looks like a candle, a pity that we don´t have a birthday to celebrate" Hubert chuckled. The surviving enemy forces were trying to leave the inferno of the watchtower, but they were welcomed by a rain of arrows and spells.

"Could you stop being so sinister? At least you are our ally, I guess. If we were enemies it would be too troublesome to my own liking" Linhardt yawned.

"As long as you don´t do anything funny to Lady Edelgard you have nothing to fear from me" Hubert said, although his usual sinister smile was clouded by a shadow of distrust.

….

"So you have defeated us all…With this the rebellion comes to and end, but at what price? The young people of this place have been decimated. Mothers and wives will cry for the lost of their loved ones and all of this to keep a lie alive"

"It was your mistake that you raised in arms against the Church. As a member of the Church your duty was to serve those in peril not to fight for your own benefit. It´s a pity that people had to die because of your arrogance, but the future will understand. The high ranked officials will be executed, the rest will be taken as prisoners and they will have to proof their loyalty to the Church. The Church won´t kill unnecessarily, but you will have to answer for the crimes that have already been committed"

"Story is written by the victors; I can already see how the copyists will embellish the tales of such adventure. However, even if we have failed, that doesn´t mean that one day the reign of this twisted Church won´t come to an end. I will pray for the arrival of such day"

"Even when you are about to die you are still spotting nonsense" Seteth sighed. "You will die here and now. Don´t worry, I´m not the monster that you think I am" he said as he swiftly killed him with one hit of his weapon.

"They really fought to the bitter end" he thought as he watched the scene unfolded before him. The resistance had been finally crushed, but he was more relieved than anything else. "At least we won´t have to worry about this anymore"

"So with this the battle is finally over" Seteth muttered as he checked his surroundings. "The rebellion has been put to an end and your help have been invaluable. Thank you, Professor you have earned my deepest gratitude"

"I did what I had to. I´m glad that all of you are safe"

"I think that as well. Could you accompany us, Professor? We need to pay proper respect, but apart from that there is something that I want to show you. Flayn, with me" Seteth said as he headed to the giant rock where the last leader of the western Church had just been slayed.

"This coastal area has been guarded by the Church for hundreds of years. It is the final resting place of some of the saint of the Church of Seiros…and also the final resting of my wife. She was always really caring and to this day I only have warm memories from her. To be honest, I wish she could be here, even if it sounds selfish" he said as he observed how Flayn placed some flowers on the grave.

"It isn´t selfish at all. I completely understand the way you are feeling" It was an unusual sight to see Seteth being so open about his path, but it wasn´t something that made him feel uncomfortable.

"I´m glad to hear that. Not only you have been aiding us, but you also saved Flayn. After losing my wife, I´ve devoted my entire life to protect her. I´ve said it many times already, but words can´t express the gratitude I feel for your kind actions"

"If it weren´t by you, I don´t know if I would still be here" Flayn said while shivering.

"I´m glad that I was able to save you" Byleth smiled.

"Even though you are our benefactor we´ve been lying to you the entire time, but this is the time to make it end. Professor, I must say that Flayn isn´t my sister, but my daughter. We´ve been hiding our true identities to keep her safe, since her blood is quite unique and could attract those who seek to cause only harm. I guess that this finding must have left you speechless" Seteth said as he carefully waited for his reaction.

"To be honest, I suspected something like that for quite some time" The overprotectiveness of Seteth to Flayn was more reasonable if he was protecting his own daughter, and his manners around her made him recall his own father when he was younger.

"Really? That is surprising. I thought that our disguise would be undetected by anyone"

"Dear father, I think that the way you handle me must have been your undoing. I´m not a little girl anymore, you know?" Flayn giggled.

"I see…Anyway, even if I have revealed this information to you, I hope you won´t be telling anyone else about it. I wish to keep such things private; we don´t know who might be hearing. The world is already dangerous to us. There is no need to make it worse"

"Don´t worry about it. I won´t be telling anyone about it"

"It will be our little secret then. Thanks Professor!" Flayn said with a wide smile.

"There is another matter I wanted to discuss with you. This sanctuary has been guarding powerful weapons for centuries. Weapons wielded by the saint of old" He said as he placed his hand in the large rock in front of him, the moment he did so the surface he had just touched disappeared revealing a lance and what appeared to be a catalyst. "These are legendary weapons. The forces of the western Church knew about their existence, but fortunately enough they weren´t able to reveal the seal hiding them. These weapons are mighty enough to defeat entire armies"

"Are they related to the heroes' relics?" he asked. Looking at them he couldn´t see a crest stone and the silver colors on it made him think that they were made of different materials.

"That´s a really interesting question, Professor. These weapons are said to have been created by the saints themselves so their origin is completely different so they are safer to use than the relics. However, in proper hands they are able to cause a great destruction" he said as he picked the lance, the moment he touched it, a faint silver light started to appear on the surface of the weapon. "This is the spear of Assal, a sacred relic that is tied to the crest of Cichol. As a wearer of said crest, my affinity to this weapon is higher so its properties are enhanced. However, you will understand its power if you give it a closer look" he said as he offered him the weapon. The moment he touched it he could feel an electrifying sensation running through its body. Contrary to the Sword of the Creator, the weapon was warm as if he was touching a surface embraced by a gentle sun.

"I can sense its power"

"These weapons are blessed and are able to heal its wielder even in situations of great danger. This is surely a great asset. However, that doesn´t mean that using them grant certain victory. Tremendous amounts of skill are required to use them properly. Apart from it, there is also this relic, bound to saint Cethleann; the caduceus staff. Saint Cethleann was said to devout her whole life to treat the injuries and illnesses of those who suffered during times of great peril so it´s healing magic is said to be quite powerful, although not even the most powerful catalyst can return those who have left us" he said with a sad expression on his face.

"What will you do with both weapons?"

"I think that it would be wise to entrust you with the caduceus stuff. It´s healing properties will surely be useful to you and your students even in times of great peril. I will keep the lance for now, but don´t doubt to contact me if you ever need it"

….

The camp was already in silent as he walked through the forest. In a few hours they would depart to their next destination; the lands of Duscur.

"So, the champion of the faith is walking in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere. Did you have any divine revelations?" asked a voice in mockery. He didn´t have to turn around to see Felix laying on one of the trees around.

"I was just feeling like walking, nothing to do with that"

"Even if you say so I´m sure that some people would just see what they want to. With these last battles I had my fair share of fanatism, yet it isn´t over yet" he said as he approached him. "The holy kingdom of Faerghus. It´s ironic how many lies can be placed in one single name. Holy for whom? We´ve just slaughtered the members of the western Church for the things they believed in, something harsh for an institution worried for the wellbeing of others…and a kingdom without a king until Dimitri comes of age, although I wouldn´t hold my breath about the future"

His voice was filled with resentment and it didn´t sound like a young man, but as an old, helpless warrior.

"You sound disgusted"

"Disgusted because this world is helpless, at least for what I´ve seen. The Church says that the Goddess loves us all, yet we execute does who don´t suit with their believes, how appropriate, don´t you think?"

"So you don´t believe in the Goddess?"

"I believe in facts, that´s all I care about. The changes that have happened to you are obvious enough to tell me that something must be there, but whether the teachings of the Church are the absolute truth is another story" Felix laughed. "However, clerics and their divine problems doesn´t bother me the slightest. The real problem are the knights"

"The knights?"

"Yes, they are the worst scum I can ever think of, yet they are worshipped all across the land. I can´t really blame the people since I was once like them" he sighed. "Knights are really proud of the oaths they make. Protect the faith, protect the king, protect the weak…Beautiful words turned into meaningless dust. If knights are meant to protect the weak why the slaughter of Duscur happened? For the sake of a dead king? Was the king killed by children and women? No, yet they continued nevertheless for the so-called oaths they made…and they slaughtered them like animals"

"The kingdom was in great distress when the tragedy happened"

"That doesn´t justify the slaughter of innocents, but they are knights so it´s ok, right? They tell each other how righteous they are, how high is the honor they have acquired during their battles, but they will avert their eyes at the sight of the corpses. And they even consider themselves superior to sellswords! They are just plain murderers, if they at least admitted what they are I could at least understand, but they won´t ever admit that they aren´t superior to a mercenary"

"Some of your mates are willing to be knights. They are doing their best and I have faith in them"

"You are referring to Ingrid and Ashe. Both of them are obsessed with chivalry stories. To be fair the kingdom as a whole is obsessed with it. Bringing justice and defeating the evil sounds really great, fighting for justice while they keep their sacred oaths. But what would happen if the king orders you to kill the weak? Or the faith commands you to set a village on fire? What is wrong and what is right?"

"We aren´t at war and I´m sure that Dimitri will be a good king"

"He really has a gentle face, but his true self will be revealed soon. He is just a boar…and in the case of Ingrid and Ashe, they are just believing a bunch of lies. Chivalry isn´t the apex of the life of a warrior. My brother died because of that way of reasoning, but no one apart from me appeared to be bothered by his death, quite the contrary. "He died like a true knight" my father said, but was it worth it? Is a glorious death what knights wish for? I can´t understand that way of thinking at all, that´s why I was interested in you from the beginning. You are a mercenary, the complete opposite of the values of knighthood. Most knights despise mercenaries since they said that they have no honor, but fighting with you has shown to me that you are more reasonable than most knights"

"Being a mercenary doesn´t mean that we are willing to commit any atrocities. We have our own codes, but we won´t swear undying loyalty to a lord just because they pay us"

"That´s why I like you more. I´m fed up with knighthood, although I´m not the only one that has had its fair share of it. Sylvain isn´t planning to turn into a knight, although his womanizer tendencies are really unsetting. All I can say is that in my case I won´t be the ghost of Glenn, I will cut my own way with this sword of mine" he said as he showed to him his silver sword. "You really are quite unique. That may be the reason why you earned the trust of the archbishop so fast"

"I´m glad that I was able to teach all of you. All of you have the fate of this land in your hands. I really hope that your decisions can bring a better future to the entire region"

"You may be right about that, although I don´t see myself inheriting the position of my father. The old man has still plenty of life, perhaps the day he passes away I will reconsider what I´m saying but today is not that day. Since we are already here, what about we practice for a bit? Our last lesson was ages ago, I´ll show you how much strength I have earned during this time" Felix grinned as he prepared himself for combat.

"It will be a pleasure" he nodded as he unsheathed his own silver sword.

….

"You really gave your best, Professor. I can´t barely stand on my feet" Felix said as he tried to catch his breath.

"I saw that you were giving your best so I decided to do that as well" he said as he sheathed his sword. "Your fighting capabilities have improved a lot these last months, you should be proud of yourself"

"The day I defeat you will be the day I can be proud of myself, until that day I will continue getting stronger, no matter the cost" he said as he looked at him. "Now that I think about it, that could be a reason to keep fighting"

"When I was a mercenary I fought because of the money, but now I keep fighting to protect all of you"

"So you fight to keep all of us safe? That sounds like a tale that Ingrid and Ashe would love to hear" Felix laughed before he looked at him again. "Now that I think about it can I ask you something?"

"Do as you please"

"What do you think is the cost of a human life?"

"Are you asking me this because I was a mercenary? The answer is clear in that case; it is the amount of money that they give you"

"I think that that approach to life is the most appropriate. Most people would tell you that every human life is equal but it is a complete lie. A king´s life has more value than a simple peasant or the life of a sage is more valuable than a complete village. No matter what you say the reality defies the notion of an equal valor to all life"

"You aren´t wrong, but you aren´t completely right"

"What do you mean?"

"Even if you can measure a human life because of the power or knowledge they have, their value will only depend on the opinion of others. A king without vassals is powerless, the same with a sage without disciples. Having power doesn´t mean that you are immune to the change of your own value and even if you are powerful, some people will simply not care about it. For a father his own son will be more valuable than the life of a sage he has never known"

"To sum it up, humans are irrational even when they have means to be rational. Would you dare to defy an order of someone powerful for the sake of your own feelings"?

"I will certainly do so if there is no other way around. Certainly, for all of you"

"Coming from someone that was once called the Ashen Demon it´s really impressive. I guess that time really changes all of us, even those who had earnt their reputation in the battlefield"

"Saving those you hold hear isn´t a sign of weakness, Felix. It has nothing to do with being a knight or not, but it has everything to do with being a human being. You said that you are disgusted by the way knights have been acting all this time, then show them how wrong they are with your own actions."

"I would certainly enjoy teaching them a lesson" Felix grinned. "You are quite unique, Professor. A normal teacher would have said that I was mad"

"You were just voicing your opinion. There was no reason to silent you. I´m glad I was able to know a bit more about you and I´m looking forward to our next combat"

"I´m glad as well. Glad that someone can at least think. When I was a boy, I enjoyed reading chivalry stories, but the plot is always the same. If those knights existed, they would certainly get rid of our current knights, most of them are scum, although you will shortly discover that by yourself. Duscur is fairly close and if the reports are correct, a small contingent of the kingdom is already heading to Duscur to crush the rebellion"

"We will arrive earlier than them and we´ll make sure that everything ends well. Dimitri can talk some sense into them"

"Dimitri has no power until he turns into the next ruler of the Holy Kingdom. His uncle, Rufus, is a drunkard womanizer, yet he isn´t completely stupid. The nobles of the Kingdom are asking for blood and he won´t refuse the occasion to grant it to them. Even if Dimitri is the prince heir, disobeying an order from the regent could sentence them to death, although plenty of them will just be bloodthirsty. In that case, what will you do?"

"Even if after Dimitri talked to them, they refused to stop their onslaught I will kill them"

"We are talking about troops of the kingdom here, aren´t you a high ranked official of the Church? That could bring some problems to the Holy Church"

"It doesn´t matter if they come from the Kingdom or not, if they are willing to commit a slaughter only for the sake of it putting all of you in risk, I won´t doubt to kill them. Each action brings a consequence and I will answer for them if I need to do so. However, I´m not planning on risking the safety of any of you"

"Those are quite the words, but I don´t dislike them" Felix grinned. "In that case I will be doing my best too. This could be a good opportunity to proof my training. It seems that going to this monastery was a good decision after all. People like you are quite unique. I´ll be going them, after the beating you gave me, I need some time to rest. I wouldn´t want to be exhausted for our following battle"

"Good night, Felix, and see you tomorrow" he said as he observed him in silent, their conversation resonating in his head. Even if his way of thinking was pessimistic, he couldn´t say he was wrong, it was the truth, a harsh one, but still the truth of the world they lived in.


	61. War for the weak

**1/22 Guardian Moon**

"Dragons are creatures covered in mystery. Contrary to lesser beings like the giant snakes of the wastelands or the wyverns, dragons appeared to have true sapience. With scales capable of breaking swords and the living inferno they were capable of releasing on earth they were considered goods of old.

The worshipping of dragons was popular thousands of years ago. Some warriors seek them to gain the secret of immortality yet what happened to them remains a mystery. The only trustworthy records of the existence of a dragon come from the Immaculate One. This individual was covered in white scales and it was said that it accompanied Saint Seiros in her fights to settle the teachings of the faith across the entire Fódlan. It is said that it was capable of effortlessly annihilating entire armies accompanied its trusted friend. Thus, the Immaculate One and Saint Seiros came to be worshipped as the champions of the faith. It is said that in times of need the Immaculate One will come to the aid of the faithful ones to stop the misgivings of the realm of men. In lesser regions dragons are believed to exist and those who seek to master a dragon are called dragon seekers. The dragon seekers are usually spotted to the east of Fódlan, in a region whose name is Almyra. The Almyrans are known to use wyverns in their incursions to Fódlan, but there have never been reports of beasts that could be considered dragons"

"The Gods created the wyverns so we could ride the dragons. Imagine having such a magnificent mount. A true god of war, releasing death upon the enemy. Even the sun would fear us!" he could hear the voice of Nader while laughing as they looked as the night started to fall over Almyra.

"I´m not so sure. We might end up as their supper"

"Well, in that case we would only need to kill them. A pity that such beasts aren´t here anymore. The beasts of the tales of the past are nowhere to be seen, but they must have existed, the armor of the king is made of dragon scales after all. No matter what weapon you use against it, it will shatter, even once a wyvern tried to shallow the old man and its teeth broke, that was quite the view. One day that armor could be yours"

"You know that it´s going to be really difficult. The succession to the throne is already complicated. I don´t think I will get my hands on it" he sighed. "Although if I could it could be an interesting thing to have, at least it could protect me from assassination attempts"

"Only cowards would try to avoid fighting under the sun. Are you saying that because you are too pale for our liking? Don´t take it bad, boy, but people from Fódlan have never been welcomed here, although the feeling is shared over there as well. They are closed to the rest of the world, considering themselves the elite of this world, but they are just a bunch of cowards. In open field they would be slaughtered by our forces, but they prefer to hid themselves in their rocky houses. That´s why we have cannons; to shatter their houses and watch their horrified faces as we defeat them"

"There is no other way around but to combat, right?" he sighed.

"You already know the answer, Claude. Almyra only respects strength. Your father ascended to the throne not because he was the eldest or the wisest, but because he was the bravest. He was on the frontlines during decades, his body is covered in scars, but he is revered by every single boy across the land"

"I wonder what the widows think about such tales" he thought. However, Nader wasn´t wrong the slightest. Even though a king ruled over Almyra, it was only because the Almyrans trusted him. Previous kings that had been defeated easily or were mere cowards had been swiftly eradicated as another war chief took their place. Almyra was a tough country where only the strongest survived, but that could be the key for the plans of his future. "Fódlan won´t open itself easily unless I forced it to do so, but for now the only thing I have is my brain" he thought as the memories of his past disappeared in front of his eyes.

The sky was still dark outside, but he knew that in less than an hour the sun would rise. After some part of the Church forces, accompanied by the Professor and students, had left he had plenty of time to sneak into the most guarded places of the monastery. The books that were around him contained tales more interesting that the ones explained in the official books of the Church.

"Having a dragon would certainly help, but it seems they went extinct" he said to himself. The old tales of Almyra were filled by stories of dragon riders that conquered different lands and continents and were able to reach unknown places with the help of their wing companions, although most of these tales ended in a bloodbath for its protagonist. Even a dragon rider could be killed.

The most similar thing to dragons were the albino wyverns of the Speartip summit, to the far east of Almyra. Contrary to most wyverns they were incredibly intelligent, capable of understanding the human language to an unknown extent, but before riding one of them it was necessary to gain their trust and that could take years of perseverance and even them that wouldn't mean that they would accept you. "Well, those are problems that I will have to settle after I return, but first I have to make sure that I know this land as an open book". His incursions into the most restricted areas of the monastery has allowed him to get a greater insight in the political nuances that were suffocating Fódlan. Now he was trying to figure out how to resolve the riddle that was presented in from of him, waiting to be resolved.

"The Professor would be a great asset to my plans" he thought, he was the wielder of the Sword of the Creator, after all. As he yawned his attention was caught by an old book next to him.

"The book of death" he was able to decipher from the letters of the cover. An eye was drawn on its surface, although it was closed. The first time he had opened it, the pages were void of any content. "There must be a hidden trick to read it" he thought as he lazily turned the pages. A sudden pain made him realized that he had cut one of his fingertips with the pages, the moment that the blood landed on it words started to form before him. With his curiosity renewed he didn´t think twice as he submerged himself into the lecture.

What he read was very dark: spells capable of turning the guts of someone into snakes, internal combustion or summoning demons from your own shadow were mere examples of the spells that could be casted with enough knowledge. However, the runes used by the book were completely different to the ones he had been studying at the monastery, even the blackest magic available used runes which he had some familiarity, yet these ones were a complete mystery to him. The most unnerving fact was that the book was eager to drink his blood and he needed to cut the palm of his hand with a hunting knife to continue scanning through the pages.

Even though the information he was reading could be of interest to a scholar of ancient spells or a dark mage, he felt there was nothing of interest left for him on that book, especially from a book so eager to absorb his own blood. He was about to close it, when a pair of golden words caught his attention.

"Fata mundi" he read as he paid close attention to its content.

"Through the darkness of the void a star shall rise; a cursed being, sacrilege of the basic rules of nature. Its power will make the pillars of this forsaken world crumble, spreading its fire through the entire land, but the very same fire won´t heal the darkness beneath. The Lord that has been consumed will raise again from its chains as the moon turns red over an azure sky. The day of wrath, that day will dissolve the world in ashes. Doomed to flames of woe unbounded. The eyes will finally open before the throne of beginnings. Only then, the one that endured the dangers of the curse will be the one to inherit what remains"

He wasn´t really sure about what he had just read, but he couldn´t about shivering. "This book is pretty dangerous. I should get rid of it soon" he thought. Magic beyond his comprehension and prophecies he couldn´t completely understand. "When you read a book, you connect with the experiences of those who died way before us" told him someone what appeared to be a lifetime ago, but he wasn´t so sure if he wanted to hear the tale of this book.

…

"It seems that the forces of the kingdom are still a few miles away from us. If we are lucky, we should be able to resolve this problem before they arrive" he said as he handed at his students training weapons. "These weapons are sturdy enough to leave someone unconscious, but remember that our objective is to make sure that they abandon the combat without casualties. If we defeat it like that, will they give up, Dedue?"

"Some of them won´t, but I´ll make sure to send the message to them. Not killing them will be a good signal that we mean no harm to them" Dedue said as he picked a training axe.

"You´ve heard it. We´ll fight them, but we won´t allow a massacre to happen. Ingrid, please tell us in advance if the kingdom troops are about to arrive. Until then we will make sure that both forces don´t meet on the battlefield"

"Understood!"

With their equipment already prepared for battle they approached the enemy from the northern hills of the valley. Horns were already sounding, alerting the forces from Duscur.

"Do you think they will stop fighting?" asked Edelgard besides him.

"Dedue is confident that they will. The only thing we have to do is to defeat them before the kingdom troops arrive"

"A fight against the time, then. I hope it gets over quickly"

The forces from Duscur were light armored, most of their troops carrying heavy axes that couldn´t compete with their light weighed weapons.

"Why are you fighting us with training weapons?" he asked a shocked soldier before he was sent to the ground by Dedue´s axe.

"We are here to avoid a slaughter, leave this place and live another day. The kingdom troops want to kill all of you" he said as he helped the fallen shocked soldier to get up again.

One by one the forces of Duscur started to retreat with bruises on their entire body, but all of them luckily alive.

"Don´t retreat, you cowards!" shouted what appeared to be the general of the main troops.

"Professor! If we defeat him, the rest of the troops will understand that this fight has no purpose!"

Nodding at Dedue, he decided to charge at them.

"Only you? You must be a madman or a hero" laughed the commander as he tried to hit him with his heavy axe. The rest of his bodyguards were trying to surround him, but his light armor allowed him to out speed them.

"Could you stop jumping all around?" the commander said as he missed another attack of his axe.

"Leave this place, there is no point about dying here"

"We are fighting here to liberate our people; we need to do it for their sake!"

"Tell me, would you be able to protect them as a corpse? We don't want to kill any of you, but the kingdom troops are approaching and they won´t be so merciful as we are"

"The Professor is right; this rebellion must stop for the sake of everyone. When I turn into the next ruler of the Kingdom, I promise all of you that mistakes of the past won´t be repeated again" Dimitri said as he approached him accompanied by Dedue.

"How could I trust someone like you?"

"His highness is kind of heart, he accepted me even if I´m hated by most of the inhabitants of the Holy Kingdom. I´ve lost my family, but he has granted me a new life. Those who are gone won´t return to us, but we can protect the future of Duscur stopping our constant fighting. Fighting will only bring more corpses"

"Why would you do something like that? The king died there, that´s the only thing the knights have been saying all these years"

"It is true that my father died there, but not everyone that died there was responsible of such crime. I promise I´ll be just. Justice will be brought to those who had committed atrocities, it doesn´t matter where they come from, if they are guilty of their crimes, they will answer to them. That´s the oath I promise to your people"

The general from Duscur was visibly shocked as he heard those words.

"Professor! The Kingdom forces are almost on us!" Ingrid shouted from the heights.

"You don´t have any time to lose, leave this place at once!"

"We´ll leave for now, but I can assure you that not everyone will be pleased with it"

"You are a general of your people, keep them alive instead of sending them to certain death"

The general was about to answer back, but after hearing the sound of war horns he decided to run away, accompanied by the rest of the forces.

"His Highness, Professor my most sincere gratitude for your help. You´ve saved my people, at least for this day" Dedue genuinely smiled as he bowed before them.

"It isn´t over yet. We must deal with the Kingdom forces or they will try to hunt them down"

"Now the real battle begins" Dimitri sighed. "I hope that they are reasonable enough. I´ll have to send to my uncle a letter explaining our presence here, but I regret nothing. I appreciate your help, Professor. It is at times of need when we need to aid each other"

"You will surely have plenty of responsibilities during your reign, but I hope you don´t forget the bonds that you have made at the monastery"

"Don´t worry, Professor. I promise you that I won´t forget anything. The good times…and the bad times" Dimitri gently smiled as they approached the hill where the banner of the Holy Kingdom could already be seen.

…

"The order of the regent Rufus is to suffocate the rebellion once and for all. The fact that you weren´t able to kill them means that we´ll need to finish the job. We´ll make sure that the pay for their crimes with their life"

"The problem has already been solved. They won´t been causing any trouble from now on. Attacking them now will be a meaningless slaughter. As the heir to the throne of this Holy Kingdom I forbid you to commit such atrocity"

"Your Highness, with due respect we must obey your uncle´s command. Until you come of age you won´t be able to command us. Besides, the inhabitants of Duscur are the scum of this land. They fornicate like beasts and they killed the king when he willingly tried to resolve the conflict in a pacific manner. They deserve no compassion!" what appeared to be the leader of the Kingdom forces said as he tried to pass through them. "Half of you are heirs of important houses of the kingdom and are friends of his highness so I wish no harm to all of you. However, there is a thing that must be done. It is our duty as proudful knights of this kingdom"

"When did you get the tittle of knight? Before or after you slaughtered a group of peasants?" asked an angry Felix.

"Enough of your insolence! We are from the same land, if those of the empire were the ones to be ill mouthing us, I could understand" he shouted, he then angrily looked at him. "Your students need to behave properly. They are disturbing our duty here. The Church has always been in good term with the Holy Kingdom, there is no need to start a fruitless discussion over this now"

"His Highness has clearly stated that he doesn´t wish any harm to the people from Duscur and their forces are in debt with us. They won´t attack again" Dedue said as he placed himself next to Dimitri.

"Your word is worth nothing, beast. Stay out of my way or I´ll cut your head off!" he shouted as he unsheathed his sword.

"This situation is escalating quickly" mumbled a worried Dorothea.

"You are right, the fact that they vehemently try to initiate a slaughter is unnerving" Edelgard said as the grip of her axe grew stronger. Even if it was only a training weapon, he was sure that a hit from her could kill an armored soldier if she wasn´t holding back.

"Acting like this will solve nothing. A true noble would fight for the wellbeing of its people. If you go after them, they will reciprocate as well and the lands surrounding this area will suffer as a consequence. There is no reason to continue this petty fight" Ferdinand said extending his arms.

"So, a noble from the Empire is trying to lecturing us, uh? You must be full of yourself if you think you are over us"

"Even if he is extravagant, he isn´t a bloodthirsty murderer like you and your soldiers"

"That the son of the shield of Faerghus is spotting such nonsense is highly embarrassing. We´ll continue our duty. Step aside! We don´t want any of you to get hurt in the process" the soldiers of the kingdom were trying to keep advancing as the ambient was quickly heating up. An ill-timed word could be the beginning of a fight. He then advanced forward.

"Return whence you came"

"Uh?"

"Return whence you came. Report to the regent that the situation is under control. Duscur won´t be raising in arms anytime soon and the peace of the king will be granted to these lands"

"Do you really trust the word of such scum?"

"I trust them. Unlike you, I don´t mind where my students come from. Dedue says that there won´t be any more troubles here and I trust his word"

"You must be an imbecile then" he laughed, but he was stopped by a sword next to his neck.

"Any more steps forward and you will lose your head"

"If you kill me, there will be consequences. The Church won´t be pleased about it too" the general of the king forces said while trembling.

"You are wrong about it" Seteth said as he stepped forward. "The Church is and remains on good terms with the Holy Kingdom, but it is against the teachings of the Goddess the use of unnecessary violence. We´ll send some battalions to this place to make sure that peace is respected between both factions. I´ll personally inform the archbishop about it so there shouldn´t be any problems"

…..

**1/26**

"I am pleased to see you well. Thanks to your assistance the petty rebellion of the Western Church has finally met its end. Now the only thing we can make is to pray for their misguided souls. May they find enlightenment in our merciful mother" Rhea said as she adopted a praying gesture. "A scholar year comes to an end and with it a year filled with unprecedent challenges. This year has been quite the anomaly, but I am glad that the will of the Goddess has guided you to me"

"I´m glad that I´ve come to this place as well" he said as he slightly bowed.

"If it is you there is no need of such formalities" Rhea smiled. "As reward for their efforts, there won´t be any final exams for the students next month. That way they will have plenty of time to prepare for their graduation. Speaking of it, there is a ceremony I wish you could participate in"

"What ceremony?"

"Those who are blessed by the Goddess are fated to receive a revelation from her. However, the Goddess cannot interact directly with the world of the living unless the situation is really dire. Despite of this, the merciful mother in her endless wisdom decided to create a place where those blessed by her would be able to hear her wishes for the world we inhabit. I am sure that the Goddess will communicate with you at the throne room, the place where it is said that she started the creation of this world"

Rhea´s face was gentle, but Seteh´s expression caught his attention. Looking at him, it could be said that he couldn´t believe what he was hearing.

"I´ve never heard of such place"

"Indeed. I would be surprise if you knew about its existence since it is one of the most protected secret of the Church. It is only accessible for those who have a great bond with the Goddess. I once received her blessing too. Even though years have passed it really feels like a recent event" she said with a dreamy look. "This next month I will be making the preparations to have such ceremony. Until then you are free to do as you please. I don´t want to rob time you would like spending with your dear students" she said with a motherly smile, although in here eyes there was a peculiar light; the light of hope.

"Thank you for everything, Rhea. I will cherish the time you´ve granted to me" he said as he left behind the audience room.

…..

"Rhea, what are you up to?" The throne room was a sacred place of their kind, the place where they had once the apex of their power, but it had been sealed for centuries after the construction of the current monastery. Despite of it, he had been to that place in several occasions, to make sure that the magic seals placed there were kept intact. Bringing a human to such place wasn´t only strange, but also dangerous.

"It is clear that the Professor has received the protection of our mother. Not only he is able the Sword of the Creator, the last earthly remaining of Sothis, but he is also able to use her power to an extent. I can´t think about anyone more suitable to enter such place.

"Do you really think that Sothis is acting through him?" He had known first hand the power of Sothis, but even though the Professor was extraordinary powerful he couldn´t compare to her powers.

"It is clear that she had accepted him as a worthy wielder of her powers. Contrary to that cursed human, Nemesis, he has received her powers through pacific means"

"Isn´t that because of what you did to him when he was a child?" he asked as he recalled the events, he had read in Jeralt´s diary.

"I told you once I won´t tolerate such questions, Seteth. Everything I´ve done has been for the greater good. The Church of Seiros has granted peace to the whole land of Fódlan and it is thanks to me that this peace has been kept. Even though they deserved to be obliterated I forgave the descendants of the ten elites to make sure that a durable peace could be built. Since then all my acts have had the objective of keeping the evil at bay. I just saved the life of the child, if Sothis has acted through him, it's just a mere coincidence"

"I apologize for my rude comments, Rhea. I´m still tired of our last campaign" he said as he looked to the ground. "Do you think the Western Church will raise in arms again?"

"Their leaders are no more, and members of the central Church have been placed to guide those who had been deceived by them. The wounds will need some time to heal, but I am confident that the differences between both churches will eventually disappear. Don´t worry Seteth, I won´t add salt to the wound. They have already paid the price with their blood, even if their mistakes had been terrible that doesn´t mean that all of them deserve to be executed"

"Understood. There was also a small conflict in Duscur as I told you in the letter, I sent to you. I acted on behalf of the Church, but the regent may complain about the way we have resolved the situation"

"The Holy Kingdom has always been a close friend of the Church, they will understand"

…..

"So, the time has finally come" she thought as she checked a map of the inner tunnels of Enbarr. Next month would proof to be the most challenging thing she would have faced in her life, but there wasn´t any way around. She needed to continue her path, no matter what, she told to herself as she observed the sunset, although her hand unwittingly touched the earrings, the ones she had received from him what appeared to be a lifetime ago.


	62. Longing

**?/?**

"What are the results of the hybrid program?" he asked as he observed the creatures in their transparent cells. He still felt weak, but he didn´t have other option but to show strength to their subordinates. After the failure of the operation to get rid of the Fell star and his convalescence, the moral among them was at its lowest.

"As you ordered us, we have combined the damaged tissue of your flesh with humans. The first test subjects appeared to show signs of mental degeneration, with psychotic breakouts, although there was a notable increase of muscular mass. It is interesting that the test subjects appeared to have develop natural crests within their organism, but they are too unstable to be used in direct combat. The crests stones developed within their bodies are small and comparatively weak to those of our ancient enemies, but they have more power stored within them than the artificial stones we have been using until now" said Odesse, which had succeeded Solon in their investigation program.

"What do you mean by unstable behavior?"

"They seem to have cannibalistic tendencies. From the 200 subjects we were able to create only 20 have survived long enough. They refuse to eat dead flesh so we have been forced to feed them with other humans. Apart from it, we have made them fight against wild wyverns. They are able to easily kill them, but they don´t seem interested in tasting their flesh. That could be problematic if we want to produce them in mass"

"We can use them to harvest natural crest stones. Continue to abduct inhabitants of the surface, make them breed if necessary but this would guarantee us a constant surplus of Crest stones for the upcoming future. How about the infusion of the DNA of the fell Star in embryos?"

"This has showed more positive results. The degeneration of the brain tissue has been drastically reduced. They are capable of using the battle equipment we have provided to them, although their life expectancy would be of a year at best since hazardous levels of radiation have been detected within their bodies. They are sterile so we will need to continue producing embryos to turn them into these promising weapons. The cost of production is higher, though. For each one of these elite unites we could produce at least 10 of those more prone to have mental breakdowns" Odesse said as he showed to him holograms of their new creation. They were more beasts than humans with wings on their backs and a double row of teeth in their mouths, although their bipedal disposition was reminiscent of humans, their brains was almost the same of the human too.

"I want them to be released for field testing"

"How many of them?"

"All of them, alongside the ones with psychotic behavior. The ones developed from embryos, are they able to understand commands?"

"Yes, they are, but I must persuade you to consider your order, Master Thales. That could bring suspicions from the archbishop"

"Who said that we would be performing our test in Fódlan?" he smiled. Dagda would be a suitable place to perform a real battle simulation with them" he said as he made appear in front of them a giant hologram of the world. "As you know, Dagda is located to the southwest of Fódlan. It is a region that stretches far to the north and the south. The south region is more densely populated, but the north should be a suitable place for our interests. Minor war chiefs are located there and we could be able to prepare more subjects for our experimentation, although I´m also interested in the South, in particular its capital. The political system in Dagda is different to the one in Fódlan, with a Senate that restricts the power of the king of Dagda"

"Are you planning to conquer it?"

"Even if it is a distant region from Fódlan an open war would attract the attention of undesirable visitors. No, I´m thinking about something more subtle. I want you to kill and supplant the king of Dagda. That way we will have a puppet state, even better than the Empire. I´m also interested in that you continue developing this project in Dagda. We´re running out of space here and I´m interested in continuing developing project Nemesis"

"Travelling to Dagda with such a group could be proved to be difficult, especially with those who had developed violent tendencies"

"Myson will be heading to the west as well. In case that you aren´t feeling confident about the security of the entire group you can entrust him some of them. In fact, that could guarantee us a better knowledge of their fighting capabilities against our sworn enemy. It wouldn´t be strange that the Fell Star came to the aid of those in need"

"I understand. I will prepare everything to leave this place as soon as possible" Odesse bowed before leaving him alone. With no one around him he looked again at the hologram of the new monsters they have created. He was satisfied to have ordered the tissue culture of the areas affected by the attacks of the Fell Star. He still felt weak, as if he had survived a virulent disease, but unexpectedly their sworn enemy has granted them a new weapon to destroy them.

"If all our projects are successful, I might be able to get rid of the Flame Emperor before I expect" he thought. Having a will of her own was a big enough hazard but he was confident that she would start the war, even though their objectives were different. However, his thoughts were more attracted to the wielder of the Sword of the Creator. If he were able to harvest the inherent power of the Fell Star, they would be unstoppable, the boundaries of this very same world broken.

"You will regret failing to kill me, Fell Star. Victory will be ours and we´ll recover the surface from your claws" he said to himself, as he touched the area where he was wounded by the Sword of the Creator.

…

**1/31 Guardian Moon**

"My Teacher, thank you for attending my request" Edelgard said as she sat down in front of him. A pleasant breeze was coming through the window of his room as he poured some bergamot tea in her cup. The cold had started to finally abandon the surroundings of the monastery, although he couldn´t say that it was warm yet.

"It´s always a pleasure talking with you" he shortly smiled as he took his own seat in front of her. It had been a while since the last time they were able to share some time together after all the events that had happened to them.

"The school year is finally coming to an end. I must say that lots of unexpected things have happened during these months, but I don´t regret coming to this place. After all, I would have been unable to meet you"

"I think the same about you"

"As far as I know, the archbishop has called off all classes to allow us time to do as we please. Most of the students are preparing for the graduation ceremony. It is quite an event after everything that has happened"

He had already seen the likes of Annette or Dorothea working hard to make sure that everything went well for the ceremony, although some other students weren´t that enthusiastic about the idea. Felix had decided to assist a group of soldiers of the Church to defeat a group of bandits that had been spotted in the surroundings of the monastery. Linhardt had been missing for a while, the door of his room sealed with spells, although they could hear him sleeping inside and Hubert had decided to return to the Empire. "Even I need to visit my relatives, although I am not so sure that they would be pleased to see me" he chuckled the day that he left the monastery riding a horse.

"Don´t you want to lend a hand with the process? I´m sure that you could give good ideas for the ceremony" he said as he sipped his tea, although he sensed that she did have other plans.

"I´m afraid that I won´t be able to lend a hand for a while, although I hope that I can be of some assistance after I return. I´m planning to return to the imperial capital. I have an important matter to resolve there"

"What kind of matter?"

"I would like to say that it´s a secret, but it would be disrespectful to you, who had trusted me with some of your inner secrets. I´m going to Enbarr to reclaim the imperial throne. My dear father has lost most of his strength, his illness has turned worse with the pass of time. It is my duty to lift him from the pressure of ruling the Empire. I´ve been preparing all my live to assume this responsibility, but I´m afraid that the process won´t be as simple as I´m saying it"

"Because of the presence of the Prime Minister; the duke of Aegir?" he asked. He had been studying about the political situation of the empire and he knew that after the rebellion of the seven, the emperor had been rendered powerless and House Aegir had assumed most of his power. Apart from that he still remembered what she told him one night, the demise of her whole family and the rise of Duke Aegir.

"Exactly. The Duke of Aegir is a petty man, but he is truly ambitious. He has kept a close watch to my father, which is accompanied by some of his men at all times. Taking advantage of the weakness of my father, the Duke Aegir had augmented his power and control over the territories corresponding to house Hresvelg. However, there is a more powerful person within the Empire"

"The regent, Lord Arundel"

"He is the most powerful man of the empire and the one that is truly in control. Duke Aegir is just the visible head and he takes advantage of it to protect his position. Duke Aegir and Arundel had been working together for some time and they have kept a close watch on my father. They are waiting for the day of his death so even if I succeed him, they can keep things under control"

"But you aren´t willing to do it. You want to reclaim the imperial throne and recover the power that your father has lost" he said. It was obvious that Edelgard appeared to be displeased with the current situation so it wasn´t difficult to imagine her possible objective.

"Excactly, Professor. The current political corruption within the Empire is the cause of suffering to its inhabitants. Aegir and his loyalists wish nothing but a life filled with luxuries while others want more lands to control to exploit their inhabitants with heavy taxes. If this situation continues I´m afraid that a rebellion will happen within the Empire or something worse; a civil war. Nobles had proved themselves to be unworthy of ruling and I´m planning to restrict their power, but to do so I need to turn into the next emperor of the Adrestian Empire. Arundel and Aegir had plenty of informants, but I have some that are loyal to me. I´ll return to the empire, but avoiding that anyone knows about it. I know that it can sound selfish, but could you accompany me? The roads to the Empire are not that safe anymore and it would be pleasant enough to have your company" she said as her cheeks turned a bit red.

"It would be a pleasure to accompany you" he said, cherishing her hand as he looked at her.

"T-Thank you. Then one of the problems of this journey is already solved" she said, her ears a bit red. "Since some of the nobles affected are the parents of some of the students, I think it would be advisable to avoid telling them about this"

"I understand" He knew that Edelgard´s plans could put some of the students of the Black Eagles in trouble, especially Ferdinand. Furthermore, if there were informants in the imperial city, a numerous group would attract attention. "In that case we should use the cover of forested areas until we reach the empire, only like that we can be sure that no one is watching us"

….

**2/1 Pegasus Moon**

The world was still covered in darkness when a shadow appeared before him.

"Good morning, Edelgard. The Pegasus is ready, we can leave now"

"Thank you for your assistance" she said as she checked her surroundings. "The archbishop must be in really good mood if she allows you to travel at will until the ceremony takes place"

"I don´t regret having that freedom from time to time" he said as he helped her getting on his Pegasus. Looking at it, he knew it couldn´t wait to rise to the skies once again.

"We´ll head south for now, but after we leave the grounds of the monastery we will head to the forested areas of the north of the empire. That way we´ll buy sometime and we´ll avoid being detected"

"As you wish" he said. With a gentle move the Pegasus started to run and, in a moment, they had already left the land under them, the monastery growing smaller as they headed south.

"I wonder how would it feel to have wings. The feeling of freedom must be wonderful"

"Even with wings the strong winds could carry you away from your destination, but you are right, it would be something beautiful to experience" he smiled as her embrace from behind grew tighter.

…

**2/3**

"This area should grant us enough cover. Only minor streams can be found around and the main trade routes are far ahead so we shouldn´t find any trouble, although we will have to say goodbye to my friend in a few days" he said as he cherished the mane of his Pegasus. Without him he would have run into more troubles, but half the journey was already done thanks to him. As if it had read his mind, it licked his face.

"It seems that he has really grown fond of you" Edelgard smiled as she prepared her resting place.

"Pegasi are really proud creatures, but if you earn their trust, they will serve you even if it costs their lives. They are the epitome of loyalty and they appear to understand more things that we would suspect" he said as his Pegasus laid down next to a tree.

"Loyalty is an interesting concept. Kings and emperor swear loyalty to the Goddess as they inherit their positions and so do their knights with them. Undying loyalty until their deaths. However, sometimes that very same loyalty could cast dark upon the paths of others. You are said to be the champion of the faith, the heir of Sothis´s fire. In a month you will say your vows in the ceremony that the archbishop is preparing and then…everything will be settled.

It is strange how the Goddess chooses someone with little knowledge of the Church itself, it almost sound like a mockery from the Goddess" she laughed. "Forgive me for my words, Byleth"

"You are free to speak about anything to me. I´m not going to judge you because of it"

"This world has already had its fair share of judges, but what makes a good judge? The ecclesiastical courts based their rulings upon the wisdom of the Goddess and the civil ones upon the King´s peace, but are we really impartial about our decisions? No matter what you do someone will judge you. Even if your objectives can be considered good some people will see evil intentions behind it"

"Sometimes it is necessary to make difficult decisions. Only when you have endured sacrifices you know if what you did is worthy or not"

"I´m willing to make those sacrifices. If Fódlan is a rotten tree I want to be the wind that takes it down to allow a younger one take its place. I´m aware that this will grant me many enemies, but even if that´s the case I´m willing to continue that path. What do you think, Byleth? Does this world need to change and if so, will it accept to do so willingly?" she asked him, her eyes reflecting the stars of the sky.

Looking at the sky, he thought about everything. The teachings of the Church, Lonato´s rebellion, the tragedy of Remire, his father´s death, the mysterious warriors from the shadows, the power granted by Sothis and the trip to Duscur.

"The world needs to change, but if you try to force yourself on it, it will fight back" he said as he looked at her.

"A crown shouldn´t be an ornament you wear on your head. It symbolizes the hopes and fears of every soul within this country. I´ll proudly carry its weight if that means that in the end of my rule the world is left better than before. With or without me. A ruler´s life shouldn´t be ahead their own people"

"Even if that´s the case I don´t wish you to sacrifice your life in vain. After the loss of my father I don´t want to lose any of you…. especially you" he said as he placed his arm around her waist. She kept staring at her hands, although she didn´t refuse her proximity.

"According to the teachings of the Church you are supposed to fight on behalf of them, not on behalf of your students, but I really appreciate your words. They speak the truth even if that could be uncomfortable to the ears of others…that´s something I really like about you. By the way, do you know why the eagle is the symbol of the Empire?"

"Because of its power?"

"Some would say so, but its origin is quite different. During the great war against Nemesis it was said that the first emperor, Wilhelm, and Seiros fought next to each other. Some ancient records said that at first, they didn´t get along, yet as time passed Seiros eventually turned into the confidant of the Emperor and even a friend. Seiros is the eagle that guided the first emperor into his crusade against the ancient king of liberation. Her wings allowed him to overcome every obstacle and in her honor the emperor choose the eagle as his personal sigil, which he proudly wore until his death"

"Sounds like a beautiful story"

"Of course, we don´t know what it´s true and what is the writer´s imagination, but it shows that even those with the greatest power need to rely on someone from time to time. The Emperor relied on Seiros and together a new chapter in the history of Fódlan was written. Today both of them are revered across the land. I wonder what others will say about the times we are living. Will they understand the way things were done back then or they will disapprove about the past?"

"We´ll never know. The only thing that is certain is the past. We can investigate about the past to our heart´s content, but the future will always remain uncertain, although we will always have the power to control the present through our acts and with it, we can alter the future to an extent, but we can´t completely control everything"

"If we could, everything would be easier, but I guess that then some other things would be lost. I´m sorry for taking your time, I´m sure that you will be exhausted by now"

"The same could be said about you" he smiled as he cherished her hair. "You should be taking some rest. Before the dawn comes, we will be leaving this place"

"I will, but let me enjoy contemplating the stars with you for a moment" Edelgard said as she placed her head on his shoulder, an electric feeling shaking his body.

"Everything is doomed to end someday, but some things should last more than others" he thought as he looked at the skies. "If I´m the Fell star could it be that Sothis was once up there with them?" he wondered as her fragrance engulfed him.

…

**2/5**

The Imperial capital was already at sight, the imperial castle resembling a giant among the rest of the city.

"Finally, Enbarr is at sight. It really feels strange to have you by my side. Unfortunately, we must enter in disguise to avoid being detected by the forces of my uncle and Duke Aegir" Edelgard said as she adjusted her hood, hiding her unusual hair. Next to her was a draft horse tied to an old caravan. "The loyalists of house Hresvelg have given us this to enter the city. It is loaded with tapestries from Derdriu. We will have to pretend being merchants until we can cross the main gates of Enbarr. I wish there was other way around, but this is the most I can do right now"

"I don´t mind, I´ll make sure that we cross the gates without them noticing. When we arrive at the gates, they will see nothing but a couple of merchants" he said, patting her head. "Take a seat" he said as he helped her to sit.

They remained in silent as they approached the gates of the city. Other merchants were already making a queue, waiting to enter.

"What do you have with you?" asked a middle-aged man, his beard starting to get white.

"The best tapestries from Derdriu. One look at them and you will be losing your head just to have a bunch of them. And you?"

"Amber from the south of Dagda. I´ll be making some money selling it to the fancy folks of the city"

"Any news to the west?"

"The senators had been detained by royal decree. They have allegedly tried to overthrow the current ruler, but a mole brought the news to royal ears, but not open battle. Things were pretty normal at the capital, only more patrols. And to the east?"

"Almyran pirates close to Goneril territory, but they have kept themselves away from the big cities"

"Pirates are just a bunch of thieves. Although at least those are trying to do something" he said as he looked towards the mansions at the hills of the city.

The gates were growing bigger as they approached. Taking a quick look to the walls and watchtowers he could see that they were observed by archers carrying long bows, although most of them were using light armor. He was wondering who were the loyalists of whom, when they finally arrived to the entrance.

"Halt! Show me your identification" ordered the commander of the garrison at the entrance.

"Good morning sir" he replied as he handed him the documents they had received.

"So, tapestries from Derdriu, uh? How has been the situation at the Leicester Alliance?"

"Pirates had been spotted to the northeast, but there aren´t any reports of attacks to big cities"

"I see. For security reasons we must take a look to the products you are bringing into the city"

"Feel free to do so, Sir" he said as the commander ordered two of the soldiers of the garrison to inspect their carriage.

"How many days are you going to stay at the capital?"

"Only the necessary to sell our goods"

"I see, the main market is a good place to do so, although I recommend leaving that place before it gets too dark. Fights have been happening these last weeks, so is a place ill-suited for women" he said as he took a look to Edelgard, which was avoiding the gaze of the commander. "Forgive my impertinence, my lady. I shouldn´t speak in such way before your husband"

"He…"

"She is my fiancé. We were taking this travel to the imperial capital as an opportunity to find a suitable ring for her" he said as he held her hand. He could feel her trembling, but his eyes were focused on the reaction of the commander.

"I see, congratulations. A few roads from the main market there is a popular jewelry. There you might find something of your liking"

"Commander! Everything in order!"

"Understood. I hope you enjoy your visit to Enbarr" The commander said with a quick nod before halting the next carriage.

They continued in silence until they arrived to their objective; an empty alley with a dead end on it.

"Why would you do something like that?" asked a flustered Edelgard as she took her hood off. Her cheeks and ears were brightly red, although he couldn´t avoid smiling to the sight of it.

"We got through the guards so I don´t see a problem with it"

"That´s not what I mean. How could you be so calmed while saying such statement…You should have told me in advance…"

"To be honest, I didn´t think about it, but I don´t regret saying it neither. I´ll take all the responsibility"

"If Dorothea were here, she would surely make a scene about it" Edelgard sighed. "But I must admit that I´m happy to hear that"

"What did you say?"

"We should be preparing to continue. A hidden path should be located here" she said as she rushed to check a wall a few meters from them. A few moments later a mechanism was activated revealing a small overture.

"This is a path built a hundred of years ago. There are a bunch of them, but unfortunately most of them are surveilled by the forces of Lord Arundel or Duke Aegir. Luckily, this one hasn´t been discovered yet, it should grant us access to the insides of the Imperial palace"

"Let´s enter quick anyway, before someone appears" No one was close to them, but they could never know when someone could appear in the area.

"You are right, I´ll be taking the lead. Be careful with the steps" Edelgard said as she entered through the hidden entrance. Following her, he prepared the palm of his hand to cast a fire spell as the mechanism activated again, hiding them from the known world.


	63. A crown of blood and tears

"I wouldn´t expect such tunnel in the depths of the imperial palace" He could see that the columns around them were old, yet strong enough to resist the castle above them.

"This is the true heart of the Empire. The imperial palace is built on an older construction that was erected in the area by the Hresvelg dynasty. "This is the past, when the foundations of the Empire remained strong, yet now the structure above is falling apart because of Duke Aegir and his lackeys. Even now they resist against the corruption above them, but now the time has come, the time to take down this rotten apple"

"The Duke Aegir" he thought as he followed her. He had never seen him, but he couldn´t believe that someone like Ferdinand could be his son. "Does he know his father as he truly is or he has remained ignorant about all his crimes?" He suspected it was the latter one, there was no way that Ferdinand knew anything about the matter. The Ferdinand he knew would do everything to stop such abuses.

The path they were following was growing narrower and the air around them was clearer.

"We are accessing the current castle. Officially there are only two paths to the throne room. The main entrance is heavily guarded by soldiers, among them loyalists to Duke Aegir. There is no way that we can access it from there. The other path is connected to the private chambers of the Emperor, but this secret path will allow us to sneak through the guards into the throne room" she said as she suddenly stopped. Before them there was a statue of Saint Seiros, her face covered by a stoned veil. "Saint Seiros was said to be a cautious individual. She avoided being seen publicly and when she acted as the counselor of the first emperor it was said that she used secret paths to reach for him. This may be one of them. It only reacts to a wielder of the crest of Seiros so there may be some truth behind such old tale" she said as she placed her hand on the statue´s chest, the moment she did, a mechanism started to move, revealing a small access.

"This way, Byleth. I´m confident that my father is already waiting for us"

…

"Edelgard, you have finally arrived. I´m so glad that I´m able to see you with my own eyes once again" said the old man sitting on the throne. Compared to its magnificence, he appeared to be consumed, only skin and bones under his clothes, yet the aura of his violet eyes was still strong.

"My dear father, I´m so sorry that I have to ask for such a favor from you. Even though you are ill, you have made your way to the throne room"

"I´m dying and the Prime Minister knows about it. They are flying over me like crows waiting for the feast to begin. Furthermore, this is the only thing I can do for you. When my family needed me the most, I failed them. Edelgard…I see all of your faces when I close my eyes, yet I failed to save all of you" the old emperor said as his hands started to tremble violently.

"Father… I don´t blame you. I know that you suffered as our own flesh was torn apart and during all these years I´ve seen the blood coming from your hands. You´ve done what you could. The crown must be already too heavy for you, I´ll succeed you and end for good the corruption of this Empire. I won´t allow further unnecessary sacrifices to take place"

"Edelgard… Your words are strong, but I´m afraid about what could happen to you. The lives of many will be placed on your shoulders and no matter where you look at, enemies will conspire to take you down. I don´t want to see your smile die down under the cruelty of the throne, but my body is telling me that I don´t have much time left"

"Father, you have been a guiding light to me since I was a child, but the time to rest has come. Allow me to assume your burdens. You´ve done enough for the sake of everyone" Edelgard said as she caressed his father´s hands.

"Your skin…I´ve already forgot how soft it was. However, to make the ceremony take place we will need a member of the Church"

"Byleth will take such role. He is the Professor who had been taking care of me all this time" Edelgard said with a faint smile as she looked at him.

"I´m Byleth Eisner. It is an honor to meet you, your Majesty" he said with a quick nod.

"It´s been years since a member of the Church has come to the throne room. I know little about you, but I know that you saved my daughter from the attack of a group of bandits. You are kind of heart and that is what matters in these dark times. We have to hurry up, we don´t have time to waste. Come here, my child, the time has come"

Edelgard kneeled before his father as he stood up.

"Who is willing to claim the throne of the Eagle?"

"Me, Edelgard von Hresvelg, a direct descendant of the first emperor Wilhelm"

"Edelgard von Hresvelg. The imperial throne only chooses those who are worth of its magnificence. The crown that lies before you is not a gift, but a burden that is only given to those who are willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of the realm. Are you willing to do such sacrifices, even if they mean the end of your own life"?

"No matter the burden, I will wear it proudly as the first Emperor did at the dawn of time. My blood will be the rivers that nourish the empire and the double headed eagle will extend its wings over my head"

"In that case I give you the crown, Edelgard von Hresvelg. The double headed eagle will rest on your head until your death or until a worthy heir takes it. Is the Goddess satisfied by my successor?"

"I´m only a faithful servant of the Goddess, but she places her blessing upon her as long as she protects the weak and the poor and those who are unable to save themselves"

"In fact, it is, the Emperor must die for his people if needed, but today won´t be that day. Rise now, Edelgard, my daughter…and the new Emperor of this nation!"

With the crown on her head she slowly approached the throne as his own father kneeled before her.

"I entrust you Fódlan, Edelgard. May your reign assure prosperity to this forsaken region. The future is already on your hands"

"Father, you don´t need to kneel before me, I should be the one doing so. No matter what happens I assure you that I will continue my path. Fódlan has already suffered too much. The land of Fódlan is corrupted and its inhabitants suffer the consequences. I know that my path won´t be easy, but I promise I will never surrender" she said as she offered her hand to his father. He appeared to be exhausted, yet he could sense that his eyes were filled with renewed energy.

"I wish I could live long enough to witness the fruits of your reign, but I´m just the ashes of the past" he then looked at him. "I barely know you, but I have the feeling that I can trust you. You are honest of heart. Even if I won´t be here, promise me that you will take care of her, even a ruler needs someone to rely on when the light vanishes"

"I promise you she will be safe. She is strong and her will is unbreakable but I will make sure to protect her if she ever needs me"

"Of course, I will need you. No matter what happens I´m counting on you, Byleth. All the events that have passed during these months have made me realize how important you are to me. It is my wish that you could continue helping me from now on" Although her words were warm, he could sense that there was some sadness in her smile.

"It would be a pleasure"

Ionius was about to speak when the doors of the main hall suddenly opened. A bald man with a bit of orange hair and eyes appeared.

"What is going on? Your majesty, you should be resting in your room. Coming to the throne room has been negligent. What are you waiting for?" He ordered as he looked at the Imperial guard surrounding the former Emperor, but they didn´t move an inch.

"How could you dare to disobey my command! I´m the Duke Aegir, the Prime Minister of the Adrestian Empire. Lord Arundel himself, the regent, has granted me the power to govern on behalf of our majesty. Disobeying my order means disobeying the Empire and it could be considered treason!" he said as he looked at his own guards. "The Emperor is tired, bring him to his private rooms"

"I won´t allow that" Edelgard said as she placed herself before the Prime Minister and his father.

"Princess Edelgard…I must admit that I´m quite surprise to find you here, but you must understand that your father needs to rest. This is for his own wellbeing"

"I don´t authorize that order! Besides, you are mistaken, Duke Aegir. I am princess no more, but the new Emperor of the Adrestian Empire!"

"That´s impossible! My informants haven´t told me anything about…"

"So, you were spying my daughter, Duke Aegir? I am so disappointed in you. The fact that you have been taking advantage of your position just to amass a fortune it´s disgusting. I will…I will…" he couldn´t end his phrase as he started to cough violently.

"Dear Father, don´t waste your energies on this worm. His machinations will come to an end here and now. Duke Aegir, you are accused of high treason against the crown. Not only you took advantage of the weakness of my father but you also tried to conspire against the heir of the Imperial throne.

"You are insane! A woman shouldn´t be the ruler of the Adrestian Empire and you don´t have any proofs of what you are saying. Not even the Emperor can accuse someone without proof!"

"Unfortunately for you there is plenty of evidence against you" chuckled a familiar voice. "I happen to have a list with all your misguided actions. Some were tougher than others, but in the end, they admitted that they acted on behalf of House Aegir. You should value your friends more carefully. Making them sing was too easy to my liking" Hubert laughed as he observed the scene leaning on one of the columns. "Tell me what do you prefer, the axe or the gallows?"

"You can´t do that to me! I´m the Prime Minister! Imperial guard, stop this madness, imprison them!" but the guards next to the imperial throne didn´t react. "How dare to disobey my command!" As he shouted his own forces started to unsheathe their weapons, the moment they did so the Imperial Guard started to prepare for combat.

"Are you willing to sacrifice the lives of your own soldiers just for your own sake? How pitiful. A true commander would try to avoid unnecessary casualties. The Throne room hasn´t experienced a bloodbath in hundreds of years, I won´t allow that it happens now. Soldiers of Duke Aegir, I appreciate your bravery, but you must know that the man you are defending is wicked and corrupted. Even if you have sworn loyalty to your Lord, no man is above the law, neither him, neither the Emperor. Return to the lands of Aegir. I´m sure that his son will soon want to hear what happened here. As a token of gratitude, all of you won´t be accountable for the crimes of this wicked man"

The soldiers of the Duke looked at each other and their rivals. They were vastly overwhelmed and after a few seconds of hesitation the first of the soldiers sheathed his weapon.

"Scum! I´ll order the execution of all of you. Your brides will be begging me to lend them a penny! I´ll make sure that you´ll pay for it!"

"Duke Aegir, it is over now" Edelgard said with a soft voice. "For your crimes half the properties of House Aegir will return to the Imperial Crown. The rest will be under my direct control until your son assumes your place. You´ll remain in the dungeons of this castle from now on" she then looked at Hubert. "Bring him to the dungeons, but make sure that he remains alive. Duke Aegir, if you ever try to leave this place you will be killed by my forces. If you ever had a bit of decency you will comply with my command. Otherwise consider yourself dead"

"My lands, my power…why….why" Duke Aegir sobbed as he fell on his knees. He continued sobbing as he was carried away by Hubert and some of the soldiers of the Imperial Guard.

"The Prime Minister is finally done for good. I wish I could have done it by my own hands, but words cannot express how proud I feel of you. Forgive me, my dear daughter, but I need to take some rest"

"I wish I could have done it earlier as well, but sometimes the only thing we can do is to wait. Rest well, father. Guards, escort my father to his room!"

"We should leave here some soldiers, your majesty"

"The health of my father is frail and he will need to be protected until the situation stabilizes. Besides, with the Professor by my side there is nothing to fear"

"Understood, your majesty" As the soldiers left the room they were left completely alone.

"Are you ok with your decision? Why didn´t you kill him? He has done so many terrible things to your family, no one could really blame you if you ordered his death"

"It is true that he has been the cause of so much pain, his ambitions the source of the destruction of my family. I despise him with all my heart, yet I have the opinion that his death won´t solve anything. Killing him would only bring me pleasure, but I would be spilling the blood of others for egoistical reasons. He is a bastard and I won´t be light on his punishment but killing him won´t bring me any benefits. Besides, even if he is a corrupted noble, he is the father of one of my classmates. Ferdinand can be annoying at times, but he has good intentions. I´m confident that he will heal the injuries of his father´s legacy and he might want to hear the truth from his father´s lips. I won´t be the one taking the life of his father until he has the chance to confront him"

"Even then, don´t you think he will despise you because of what have you done? With this move, House Aegir has lost importance within the Empire. There will be resentment and I´m not sure how he will take it"

"House Aegir won´t be the last one to hold resentment against me and in the case of Ferdinand I hope that time will make him think about it, even if he despises me after what has happened. I told you, no matter what happens I will continue my path, even if I have to confront you"

"I would never do something like that"

"No one truly knows what is the future preparing for us, but I hope that such dreaded events never happen. I´ll be staying here a couple of days. I´ll be busy but it would be a pleasure to show you the gardens of the Imperial palace. If you are interested of course"

"It would be a pleasure" he said as he gently reached for his hand.

"How moving, such sweetness is menacing to make me throw up. Anyway, I must say that what you have done is really impressive, I would have never expected less from you, Edelgard or should I call you, the new emperor?" said a cold voice from the entrance of the room. Looking at the origin of the voice, he could see Lord Arundel ironically clapping at them with a sinister smile on his face. Strangely, he wasn´t accompanied by any soldiers of his own.

"I didn´t expect your visit here and now, uncle" Edelgard carefully said, the imperial crown contrasting with her hair. "Have you come to bow before me and swear to me an unending loyalty?"

"Is there a loyalty stronger than family bonds? That should be enough. I see that Duke Aegir isn´t here anymore. What happened to him? Did you order his execution? I would have enjoyed to take a first seat in that case. I´m sure he would look like a pig sent to slaughter"

"He has been imprisoned and half his possessions will return to the crown. He will remain in an isolated cell for the time being. However, I know that you have developed some fondness for him. I have no objections if you want to join him in his cell. He will be pleased to see you again"

"Despite everything that has happened you have decided to forgive his life…" Arundel said with a thoughtful look before bursting in laugher. "The throne has been granted to a woman that forgives her enemies. If you aren´t willing to wield a sword you should be letting the future of the empire on better hands. How could we live in a time when the throne is ruled by a child? How embarrassing"

"Regarding incompetence your head comes to mind, dear uncle. Punishing the people with heavy taxes and executions won´t give you the love or respect of the people"

"I need neither of them. Fear is a useful way to rule. No insurrections have taken place since I took control and the same model should be applied to the rest of the Empire, only weaklings think that the common folk should be deserving of more. They are the pawns that we, the lords, use in our games of power and they should be pleased to have such honor. Duke Aegir was weak regarding that matter, but I would have done better. May I ask you why did you decide to take earlier the crown from your father? Are you that power hungry?"

"Of all people it is surprising that you are the one to make such accusations. I have a dream and I won´t give up even if that means my own demise. The crown on my head is the reminder of the sacrifices made and the ones waiting to be done, although you don´t seem to understand the meaning of these words."

"Youth surely make people entitled of their own opinions. Such is the way most fools live in this world, but I will ignore that last comment from you. Listen carefully, ideals are just air until they turn into reality. You can say whatever you want. If you don´t have the power to back it up your objectives would be a fruitless utopia. Regarding the coronation, the tradition asks for the presence of the archbishop to guarantee that the ceremony is accepted by the Goddess, yet I can´t see the archbishop´s presence. Could it be that you are neglecting the sacred traditions of your own people?"

"I didn´t expect pious comments from you, uncle. Byleth has assumed such role and you are incorrect about one thing. The tradition only refers to the presence of one member of the Church, but it's not necessarily the presence of its leader. Normally it would be attended by the current archbishop, but that doesn´t give less value to his presence here. Furthermore, he has been named as the champion of the faith by the archbishop herself and he has aided me in times of need. I can´t think about anyone else more suitable for such task"

"In ancient times, when the first Emperor was alive, Saint Seiros was said to be the one to assume such role. Interesting decision to say the least" he said as he looked at him, the moment he felt his eyes on him he could feel tension in his sword hand. "Since you are my niece let me illustrate you about what awaits you. The eagle is the symbol the Adrestian Empire, but only the eagle of House Hresvelg has two heads, do you know why? The blood was strong in the first generations of emperors, but as time passed the blessing of the crest of Seiros started to grow scarce and to compensate for it some emperors turned into tyrants or killed their siblings to keep the throne for themselves. Among all the royal houses in Fódlan, the members of House Hresvelg have been the more prone to commit atrocities during their reign so even if one head is willing to fight for the greater good the other one could be the one to drag the world into more suffering. Such is the fate of those crowned as emperors. I wonder which head of the eagle you will be"

"Thanks for the history lesson, uncle, but I won´t let my own fate been dictated by the mistakes of my ancestors. I really hope that this wasn´t the only reason why you have come here"

"Not at all. As you should know by now I´m not a person that likes to lose his time. There have been reports of turmoil to the west of the Empire, if you are the protector of the realm from now on the responsibility of keeping the citizens alive should be yours. By the way, Baron Ochs has come to the capital, I wonder what his intentions are, the poor soul. He still believes her daughter is alive…pathetic"

"Enough of your talk" he said as he approached him, his hand touching the handle of his sword. "Even if I wasn´t able to meet the real Monica, I won´t let you insult the memory of one of my students"

"I understand now why the Goddess has favored you with her powers. In the case of my niece, I'm not belittling her, I´m just making sure that she will be a proper ruler. I don´t want my efforts to be wasted on her" he said as his eyes observed the Sword of the Creator. "The Sword of the Creator…a magnificent piece of art I must say. Some scrolls refer to it as the celestial emperor sword, could it mean that the Adrestian Empire is just the mirror of the true empire above us? It is the Goddess´s early gift to us mortals, although uncompleted by the lack of a crest stone…yet the sword has chosen you. Will you be the successor of the King of liberation, the one that forged his own rule by war and blood?"

"I´m the one to choose my own path. Your opinion has no value to me"

"Arrogance is the curse of the young and the pass of time is its cure…if you survive long enough. Some people aren´t that lucky, their dreams are illusions numbing their minds as they run into their deaths. You were just a mercenary not so long ago so don´t think so high about yourself. Remember where you come from and never forget it. That´s the only thing certain about us apart from death" he said with an analytical look. "I´m sure that her majesty will be busier from now on. I have no business here anymore. If you want to take the weight of duty go ahead, it will surely crush you" Arundel said as he started to turn into dust, his presence disappearing from the throne room.

"It seems that he wasn´t even here. He must have casted a spell to make us think he was between us, but he was just deceiving us" Edelgard sighed. "He really thinks that I will be a failure as a ruler, but I will show him how wrong he is. His influence over me has been strong, but now the time to change has come" she said as she looked to the mural behind the throne, the one depicting the first emperor accompanied by Saint Seiros.


	64. Feelings in the shadows

**2/6 Pegasus Moon**

"The end of this endless fight is coming to an end. The battle has been hard, but our forces have prevailed over theirs and now the city is ours. Only one more push and we´ll finally get peace" Seteth said as he dismounted his wyvern. Around them, fire and smoke and the corpses scattered among the ruins of the city were the silent reminders of the battle they just had endured.

"Peace, but at what cost?" he wondered as he looked at his own sword. He had been once to that city, in which appeared to be ages ago, yet now everything was different. "Was it truly the end of all conflict?" he wondered as he approached the ruins of what was once a bridge.

"Byleth, do you have a moment?" Seteth asked as he approached him, he was still wielding his spear, yet the expression on his face was of sympathy.

"Tell me"

"You need to remain strong; this is not the time to show weakness. Everyone is relying on you; they need you. You need to guide them as you did at the monastery. You changed the fate of Fódlan that day and I´m truly grateful that you remained among us. Now is the time to end this bloody chapter of the story of Fódlan"

"That was a lifetime ago. And not everyone that I guided is with me anymore" he said as he saw his own reflection on the water. "I don´t want to fight anymore. When I was a mercenary I didn´t really care about who died. If there was a contract, I would do everything I could to achieve my objective, yet now that I´m not longer a mercenary I can´t avoid wondering about every unnecessary death that has happened until now. There should be another way, a path that could heal the wounds of this land of Fódlan, don´t you think Seteth?"

"I wish there could be such an option, but as you know, those opportunities are far gone. You should be the one to know that the best. We are the decisions we make in our lives, and every decision has consequences. You have chosen this path and she has done the same"

Did he really? He was feeling dizzy as if he was having hallucinations.

"Byleth. I understand how you can feel. I know that you hold your students in high regard, but those memories will only numb your mind. Showing mercy now would be an insult to all those that died for our cause"

"She would say the same about their casualties, yet I wish there could be a way around"

"If it was, do you think it could survive? This world is controlled by many forces and human will is one of them. The divergencies are too strong and as a consequence the lands of Fódlan have been ravaged by the fire of war"

War…a short word, yet with an inherent strength. A word he had grown used to hear during all this time.

"When all of this ends what will happen?"

"We´ll heal the wounds of this land and we´ll devout our lives to avoid another future like our times. There will be grief and resentment, but it will be the duty of the victors to shape this world into a more tolerable one. I´m the first one to admit our lack of vision, but the lies weren´t ill intentioned"

"A lie is a lie. Even if the intentions are pure of heart, they will inevitably cause harm to someone. It is preferable a hard truth that a nice lie. She didn´t lie when she said she would do anything to continue her path"

"And that tenacity is the cause of the suffering of many, but I´ve come to understand how is her way of reasoning. An old tree won´t come down unless struck by a strong wind. That tree is no longer the one that used to be, but that doesn´t mean that everything was rotting. Youth always make people reckless, but that isn´t an excuse to what happened. We need you, Byleth. Our forces need a leader for this last battle. I can say now that I consider you a trustworthy friend. Not only you saved Flayn, but you have been fighting alongside me in countless battles. You are the true definition of what a true friend is"

The situation where he stood was the result of his decisions, yet he felt too weary to continue. He still had doubts about what he should do, yet he felt that he was following the path expected from him and he didn´t have any choice about it. If he had carefully thought about the consequence of that decision, he wondered what could have happened back then. "Am I the one to decide my path or everything has been decided beforehand?" He felt like he was drowning, feeling of regret for the corpses left behind stabbing his chest, yet step by step he was going forward. He looked one more time to his own reflection before looking at Seteth.

"I´ll do it, but I will be the one to fight her. It is the only thing I ask you to respect. It is my duty, after all as her Professor"

"And I will respect your decision. Of all people you are the only one, she might listen to. I don´t wish her death, but remember; sometimes hard decisions must be done for the wellbeing of others. It would an insult to the memories of those who had already left us if we suddenly changed our opinion after all that had happened. I´ll tell our forces. Your presence will give us enough strength to finish this once and for all"

"That´s what I hope as well" he nodded as he looked at the castle before him. Despite the time that had already passed it still felt like yesterday, yet everything was completely different, his memories stabbing his heart to death.

"In the end I was unable to keep my promise. I´m sorry I couldn´t. In the end you were right, words are just wind that disappears and changes at will. Only our actions matter in the end, but is this really worth it? I wonder….I wonder if there was another door to open" he wondered as heavy rain started to fall.

"Seteh?" he asked, but he could see no one. The heavy rain was quickly turning into a ravaging storm when he heard a roar that paralyzed him, it was the roar of a beast of an immense size. Unsheathing his sword, he prepared himself to face the unexpected enemy. A monstrous blast of fire shook the ground next to him. His adversary was covered in heavy scales, its reptilian eyes focused on him.

"A dragon?" he thought as he avoided another lethal blast. The dragon was unrelenting with its attacks, its flames melting the ground, creating dangerous pools of living hell. Using the Sword of the Creator as a whip he released a charged against the beast, but it didn´t appear to feel it. Feeling a familiar itching on his sword hand he decided to release the power of the crest of flames.

"I won´t be beaten by you!" he shouted as he used the whip of his sword to jump on the beast, while it was preparing to release a potent fireball. The beast roared as it tried to get rid of him, its tail hitting the buildings with fury as claws tried to trap him in vain. Two handing the sword he tried to pierce through the skull of the beast. He could feel the heat from the insides of the dragon, a furious siss piercing his head as he continued to push the sword into its skull, when he was thrown away by one of the claws.

"What are you?" he wondered as he erected a magic barrier to stop one of the fireballs. The beast roared as it used its strength to propel itself to the sky with the aid of its back legs and its wings. Opening its jaws, he could see how a living inferno was forming within it.

"I need some cover" he thought as he rushed to one of the ruins around him.

The flames violently impacted with the ground, making him wonder if the foundations of the earth had been hit by the ire of the beast. The stoned walls surrounding him were starting to melt when he erected a magic barrier. Even though he was exhausting all the power of his crest, the first cracks started to appear in his magic barrier.

"Is this the end for me, to be devoured by the fire?" he wondered when he noticed that within his barrier there was a small rose which had been saved by the fire because of his spell.

"If I give up, everything will burn" he thought. He didn´t know why, but its sight gave him a renewed strength to face the inferno around him. All his body was feeling as if he was burning, but he needed to continue. "Just for this…just a bit more. I need…"

….

When he opened his eyes, it was still completely dark. He felt like his head was about to explode, a cold sweat running through his body.

"What had just happened?" he said to himself confused. It appeared to be a dream, yet he felt there was something odd about it. Could it be a vision? He knew that some people were capable of having visions, although most people didn´t trust such methods. No matter how hard he tried to remember what had just happened, the images in his head were quickly diluting, leaving him even more clueless.

It was still night outside, but he decided to leave his room. After the coronation had ended, Edelgard had been spending the rest of the day within the private chambers of her father, making sure that everything remained under control.

"These rooms are for guest of high honor, they have an access to the inner gardens of the Imperial Palace. I disagree with such decision, but I´m powerless about it. I hope you can appreciate it accordingly" he could remember Hubert saying before he disappeared once again.

"I guess I will take an opportunity to calm down then" he thought as he opened the doors of the room. Even though the torches were lit, there was no sign of soldiers nearby. Walking in silent he arrived a few moments later to the inner gardens of the palace. There were all kind of different plants in it and the views of the city were really astonishing. The relaxing sound of a fountain nearby made him feel relaxed, making him almost forget what he had seen in his dreams.

"It´s really an astonishing view, isn´t it?" whispered a voice behind him, making his heart beat faster. Next to him was Edelgard, the imperial crown still on her head.

"I didn´t expect you here"

"Neither I, but I can´t really complain about it. Most important matters have already been resolved and my father needed some sleep so I decided to take a short walk before going to sleep. What about you, Byleth?"

"I had problems to sleep"

"It must be a drastic change compared to the places where we´ve been sleeping before. Those rooms were the last addition to the imperial palace, although that happened more than fifty years ago. Compared to it this garden is quite old, it can boast about a history of several centuries. When I was a girl, I used to spend my time here, climbing to trees and observing the city from the distance. Back then I thought that the world was much smaller than it actually is, although everything was simpler back then"

"Time really changes everything" A year ago he was travelling alongside his father as a mercenary and now he was finding himself in the inner gardens of the imperial palace, next to the current Emperor of the Adrestian Empire. If he told a tale like that a year before, his companions would have laughed at him, saying that he had drunk too much.

"It really does. The friends of yesterday can turn into the enemies of tomorrow. Oaths and promises can be broken as swords in the middle of a combat. You could say that everything is doomed to change for the better or for the worse"

"Time alone isn´t the responsible of it. Regarding people, those changes happen because of the decisions we make in our lives. We can only control what we do, regarding others we are helpless, but that´s why having trust in the others is important. Only like that you can reach higher heights, helping each other out"

"If Claude said something like that, I would have thought he was mocking me. If Dimitri said something like that, I would think he is too idealist, yet I´m tempted to agree with you when you say it. It is really strange how my decision changes in such an irrational way" Edelgard said with a sad smile. "And now I´m the Emperor of this land. The next steps will determine how my legacy would look like and I must confess something; the burdens of the crown are menacing to overwhelm me, but I must remain strong" she said as she absently touched her crown.

"You don´t need to be the Emperor at any time, for now you can just be Edelgard" he said as he took the crown of her head, patting her head with his free hand.

"Byleth!? How could you do something like that to an Emperor?"

"Emperor or not you are still my student and that won´t change even now"

"I appreciate that feeling, but I´ve come to think of you as an equal. Our bonds had grown really strong after all this time. You have opened me to a world that I didn´t think it could exist. All these months have been a blessing, I wish I could stay like this, I truly do, but that would be selfish to those who depend on me, although deep within me I wish you could think the same" she said as she gently placed her hands in his, making him feel a bit dizzy.

"The night is truly beautiful today" Edelgard muttered, her face a few inches from him, but he wasn´t looking at the sky, his eyes were focused on hers, drowning in them.

"I´m afraid of many things, Byleth. I dream of a bottomless ocean and how it shallows me. It is my greatest fear; to be powerless about what is going to happen from now on, but your presence relaxes me" she said as she buried her face in his chest, a storm of feelings menacing to overwhelm him.

"Byleth"

"Yes, Edelgard?"

"Could you close your eyes?" she said in an unusual soft voice.

He closed his eyes, but he could feel how she was approaching, a sweet scent coming from just before him. He was tempted to open his eyes, but was afraid of ruining everything.

"No matter what happens don´t forget about me because I won´t forget you" she whispered as he felt a soft pressure on his lips. It was so sudden he wondered if he had just imagined it. When he opened his eyes, Edelgard was standing in front of him, the imperial crown on her head, although her face was looking to the sky above them.

"Edelgard…I…"

"Now I have the strength to continue, thank you for everything Byleth. I hope you can get some rest" she said as she ran away from the place. He was tempted to follow her, yet he felt it was better to avoid pressuring her.

"I don´t even know if I´m dreaming yet" He was so confused about what had just happened he felt his head was about to explode. Even though he had been longing for a moment like that, the situation looked more like a farewell like anything else. "Is this the wall that separate both of our worlds?" he wondered as he looked to the sky. He was the wielder of the Sword of the Creator, the bearer of the Crest of Flames, yet he felt powerless about such things. Perhaps if both of them had a simpler life, away from such power…

…

She finally caught her breath as she arrived to her room. She had used one of the secret passages to arrive to the gardens, but she didn´t expect him there.

"I can´t even understand why I did it" she thought as she touched her lips. Sensing that the ending of their journey together was coming to an end, she had surrendered for a moment to her own feelings, but it was the only moment she could truly be herself. She knew what she had to do and even though it would crush her soul, she knew that even if she had to made him her enemy, she needed to continue her path.

"Perhaps in a simpler life, things could be different" she thought as she placed the crown at her nightstand, but there was no purpose on thinking about a reality that couldn´t be. Hubert and her had already prepared their plan to assault the so-called throne room, their troops awaiting the moment that the coronation took place. That event would decide the fate of many. Her classmates, some of them who had parents that had opposed her could certainly grow to hate her. The archbishop would without a doubt try to get rid of her; she had already shown how merciless she could be with those who opposed her rule and regarding Byleth she was certain that he will do anything to protect his students, but which students would he choose?

"Just a bit more and everything will end, for the better…or for the worse" she thought as she entered her bed, although she wasn´t able to get enough rest, the beatings of her heart resonating in her head.

….

"Baron Ochs, I am afraid that your daughter is already dead. The Monica we knew was just an impostor that tried to kill us all. She was a crazy individual which confirmed the death of your daughter. I can only express my condolences for your loss" Edelgard was sitting on the throne, the guards keeping a perimeter around her.

"It cannot be. I have received reports telling me otherwise. Her captors had been asking for more money, but I have received proof that she is still alive" Lord Ochs said as he showed to them red hair strands.

"They could have been taken from her corpse. I agree with Lady Edelgard´s word. The impostor that supplanted Monica confirmed that the original Monica is no more. I´m not a man of condolences, but I can grant you that the responsible of such heinous act paid with their lives" Hubert said. It was a strange sight to see him without his usual uniform, the symbol of house Vestra on his chest.

"I won´t believe such words until I see her body with my own eyes. She is my only daughter. Our family is devastated by her disappearance. I beg you for your help. I will surrender my lands to the crown, but please I want to see her again" Baron Ochs said as he fell on his knees as if he was begging for his life. He couldn´t avoid feeling sympathy for him, losing someone that you loved was truly a stab to the heart.

"Baron Ochs, the only thing that I can say is that I understand the feeling of losing someone you hold dear. I am sure that Monica was a blessing to your family, even if I didn´t have the pleasure to meet her true self. Those who kidnapped her and later killed her are just a bunch of monsters that think they can act with impunity, but they are wrong. The executioner´s axe will come to them too. The only thing I can promise you is that I will search for the culprits and I will make sure that they leave this world for good. You are a good man, there is no doubt about it, but even now your people need you more than ever before. You have to stay stronger than ever before, for those who serve you, for those that love you" Edelgard´s eyes were filled with sympathy, but looking at Baron Ochs he doubted he was listening to her words, his eyes were devoid of life. He really knew how he was feeling, as if his life had lost all purpose; feeling powerless and furious about the situation.

"I wish I was as strong as you, your majesty, but I am afraid that I cannot give up. I have the feeling that she must be still somewhere. I will do everything I can to bring her back, if I just gave up, my spouse wouldn´t forgive me, neither me"

"We have to stand by the side of the Baron, your majesty" said one of the mages accompanying Ochs. "The Monica we knew was a blessing and was the light that guided us all. Letting her fade away would be a betrayal to everything we hold dear. We do this not because of duty, but because of love"

"Love is truly another form of loyalty. I will keep my word; I will make sure that people like Monica don´t have to suffer in this world. Those willing to make such acts deserve no compassion"

"I appreciate what you said, but our audience is over then. I´ll continue my search, but first I need to head to the main market"

"The main market? It should be safe at this time of the day, but I recommend you keep an eye on your surroundings. Criminal bands are said to be fighting for its control. I will make sure to resolve this problem, but more urgent matters are slowing down the process"

"Don´t worry, your majesty"

"Out of curiosity, what are searching in the main market? Provisions are easier to obtain at the docks and the taverns are more suited to obtain information" Hubert said with an analytical look.

"What I do or not is none of your business" The Baron said with a nervous look. "I´ll leave them. I am sorry for wasting your time, your majesty"

"Farewell, Baron Ochs"

The Baron and his soldiers started to leave the room, although the Baron looked back twice before leaving.

"The Baron is clearly hiding something, his reaction to my question is evidence of it"

"In his state it would be unwise to leave him alone. Do you think that he is dealing with the likes of Solon?" he said looking at Hubert and Edelgard. Edelgard was acting her usual self, which was making him even more confused. He really wanted to talk with her alone, but for now he knew that the current matter was more urgent.

"It is true. He might be searching for something in exchange for her daughter. Desperation can bring people to their limits. We should intervene before the situation gets worse. I will personally go to the main market. He is one of my citizens after all"

"The Imperial guard will accompany you as well, your majesty"

"I hope that it doesn´t turn into a bloodbath, but if we have to fight, I won´t hold back" Hubert chuckled before looking at him. "It might be the last time we fight together before this scholar year ends. It is surely a strange feeling, although not an unwelcome one. Actually, I´m looking forward to it"

He accompanied them through the gates, his sword hand ready to get into action while his mind was still lingering about last night.

"Sometimes I´m not able to distinguish reality from illusions, but that must have been real. Otherwise, I wouldn´t have such vivid memories about it" he thought as they continued to approach the city under them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took some time because of issues, but I didn´t want to ruin the schedule. Hope you enjoy!


	65. The Schackled Wolves

"Byleth? The hell are you doing here?" asked a surprised Balthus. Of all places he didn´t expect to meet the ashen wolves here.

"The same could be said about you, Balthus. What are you doing here?"

"It´s simple, do you remember the weapon I was using back them? Some asshole stole it while I was drunk and I´ve come chasing him"

"You really are troublesome. If I didn´t accompany you I would have a more relaxed life" Hapi complained "Well, at least the Professor is here, do you mind helping us?"

"Of course" he nodded while smiling. They were his friends after all.

"We´ll have time to celebrate for this encounter after we get it done, for now it seems that a fancy lord and those assholes are already having a fight"

"There is no time to lose, I won´t let innocents get involved into this fight" Edelgard said as she readied her battle axe. "Imperial Guard, secure the place and evacuate those in need!"

"Understood emperor!"

"Emperor?! Wow, I´m out a few weeks and the world changes without noticing" Balthus laughed. "Let´s get this party started!" Balthus shouted as he ran towards the enemy.

"How troublesome" Hapi sighed as they accompanied him to the fight.

"I need that relic! For my daughter! Please give it to me, I´ll reward you accordingly"

"The hell you are talking about! That´s our loot! It must cost a lot, I won´t give it to you unless you bring a mountain of gold"

"What is going to cost you is a punch in your face, asshole!" Balthus roared as he punched one of the thieves in the face.

"Leave that relic alone! If you don´t do it, something bad will happen!" Hapi shouted as she released a spell against them.

"Well, if it happens, they might end up eating each other, it could be quite a sight"

"Hubert, now it isn´t the time for such jokes. Surrender the relic, Baron Ochs, stop this nonsense" Edelgard commanded as she used her axe to crush the enemies in front of her while he was making sure that the enemy didn´t outflank them.

"I wish I could, but this is the only opportunity that I have to see my dear daughter again. Feel free to imprison me if you want, but first I will take it. Kill them!" Baron Ochs ordered as his forces established a defensive perimeter around him.

Using one of his swords he killed the thieves and Baron Ochs´s forces as he tried to approach the thief holding the gauntlets.

"You little brat, return that to me!"

The thief was unsheathing his sword to face Balthus, but both him and Batlhus received the impact of a spell.

"Baron Ochs, here you have it!" shouted one of the magicians as she threw the gauntlets to the Baron.

"I won´t give you the opportunity to see my daughter again! If you want to fight so be it!" Baron Ochs said as he prepared to use the gauntlets.

"Don´t do that!" Balthus shouted, but it was too late. The moment he inserted his hands in the gauntlets a black substance started to pour from the weapon, involving him.

"ROARRRRRRR!" Instead of the Baron there was a giant winged monster in front of them, its claws dangerously sharp. Its mere presence spread fear through the ranks of the thieves, which started to run away.

"Dammit, this shouldn´t have happened"

"This is not the time to give up, Balthus. Hubert, Hapi use your spells to cover me and Edelgard, Balthus make sure to recover the relic the moment we slay the beast!"

"Understood!"

The beast was preparing a wind attack, but the spells released from Hapi and Hubert made him lose its focus. Taking advantage of it he used the Sword of the Creator to propel himself towards the beast, his weapon cutting through the wings of his foe.

"Now Edelgard!" he shouted as the beast approached the ground for a few seconds.

"Baron Ochs, I´m sorry for this" Edelgard said as she jumped on the beast´s face, her axe crushing through the skin and bone of the monster, the ground around him shaking violently. As it happened the beast started to disappear, reappearing the Baron, which was covered in blood, his face a mess.

"I got the relic, although this situation sucks" Balthus said as he worriedly looked at the Baron.

"Baron Ochs, please stay with us!" one of the wizards shouted as she hurried to his place. With the thieves gone the forces of the Baron had completely forgotten about them, all of them worrying about his wellbeing.

"Perhaps a strong enough healing spell would be enough" he wondered as he doubted if he should approach the Baron, when a cold voice interrupted him.

"How interesting, so here was the other device" said a man standing on one of the roofs. His hat partially hid his face, but he could see that his flesh was completely pale. In one of his hands a relic like item could be seen.

"Another thief? Come on, give me a break! This is mine, stop messing around!" Balthus shouted as he prepared to fight again, this time with his gauntlets ready.

"Thief? The craftsman can´t be considered the thief. You are the ones that are usurping our legacy" he said to Balthus as he realized Byleth´s presence.

"The Fell Star? Solon underestimated you and even our Lord committed the same mistake once. Your mere existence is a threat to everything we stand for and I, Myson, will resolve this problematic once and for all. Very well then, this will be the opportunity to test the strength of our devourers of stars" he said as he extended his arms, the moment he did monstrous creatures started to appear in front of them.

"What the hell are these? It´s the first time I´ve seen something like this" Hapi muttered. The monsters in front of them were standing on their hind legs and they were fully covered in armor, strange devices on them. Compared to other monsters they were smaller in size, but even then, their height was the double of a human. There were only six of them, but he sensed they were more dangerous that the ones they had been fighting until now.

"Surprised? This is the apex of our knowledge" the mysterious man laughed. "Get rid of the Fell Star, destroy everything that stands on your way and recover the gauntlets"

"Permission to use heavy weaponry?" asked one of the beasts with a mechanic voice.

"Allowed. Fire at will"

"You are the worst!" Hapi shouted as she released a fire spell against them, but it was stopped by one of the beasts, which activated an energized shield.

"What kind of magic is that?" Hapi asked shocked.

"That´s not magic, little girl, that´s technology, progress. This time we won´t be holding down, the Fell Star must be eradicated" he said before looking to Edelgard. "Some should run away before the situation gets worse"

"Allowing a battle in the heart of the Empire and in front of me. I will never allow something like that!"

"Having a will of your own is surely troublesome"

Their conversation was interrupted as one of the monsters shot at them a fireball through its arm, the explosion leaving a crater behind.

"Protect the Baron at all costs!" shouted one of the wizards as the remaining forces of the Baron prepared for battle.

The forces of the Baron started to charge at the monsters which where standing where they had just appeared.

"Fire at will!" Myson shouted, the moment he did all of the monsters released a rain of death upon them.

"To the ground!" he shouted as he pushed Edelgard, which was standing next to him. The projectiles that they were firing at them had the appearance of small cannon balls yet they were too fast to be seen before the impact. In a few seconds most of the Baron forces were slaughtered, not even the strongest of armors was enough to stop such attack.

"Erect a magic barrier, quickly!" one of the mages shouted.

"Pathetic" Myson smirked as the beasts charged at the magic barrier with their energy infused weapons. Only a handful of hits were necessary to destroy it, before those standing behind were slaughtered by them.

"Stop this madness!" he shouted as he released a giant fireball against them, but the attack was stopped by one of the shields of the beasts, as one of them released a beam which impacted in one of the columns of the market.

"They are heavily armored and they have a huge variety of weaponry. This looks bad" Edelgard said as she avoided a blast aimed at her.

"They are really difficult to deal with. We need more men" said an exhausted Hapi.

"If the local forces intervene there will be plenty of casualties" Edelgard replied. Her face was red, but her eyes were lit by pure fire. "They feel they are above everything, but they are mistaken. I won´t hold back" she said as an intense energy started coming from her, the power of her twin crests.

"You might have the technology, but you lack the soul to make this world a better place. I won´t let you cause any harm to them" he said as he pointed the tip of his sword towards Myson. "I´ll make sure that I´ll kill all of you, you will regret what you have tried to do here" he said as he felt how his inner power was starting to flow through his veins.

"The light of the star is getting brighter, but this won´t be my undoing, I´ll…" he was interrupted by the slash of a sword, its right hand falling to the ground.

"I´m sorry, but I´ll be taking this" Yuri said appearing from the shadows while he took Myson´s hand. "I´ve been searching for this relic for a long time, thank you for the invisibility spell, Constance. Professor, sorry for arriving all of a sudden, I´ll promise to tell you later"

"You would be helpless without me, luckily enough it´s cloudy today. I´m glad to meet all of you once again. Not the reunion that I expected, though" Constance said as she appeared a few meters from them, a confident smile on her face.

"Seeing both of you here is such a relieve that I´m about to sigh"

Looking to her, he suddenly came with a new risky idea.

"Hapi, do it"

"Are you sure Professor? You know what will happen"

"Let the monsters fight against them, they have the number advantage, it´s time to take it back"

"A fight against everyone, just the one of my liking" Balthus laughed as he prepared his fists.

"You bastards, I will show no mercy to any of you!" Myson shouted as he applied a fire spell on his wound to cauterize it. As he said so, purple mist started to appear around him, more beastlike monsters that the ones they had been facing starting to appear.

The new reinforcements started to charge at them, but a shriek from the skies told them that their "reinforcements" had arrived, giant eagles joining the fight as if they had been summoned by a god of war.

One of the eagles trapped one of their enemies and flew with it to the skies before letting it fell to the ground, the impact making the ground shake, but the eagles were also experiencing casualties, the projectiles from their enemy piercing effortlessly through their bodies. Avoiding one of the projectiles aimed at him, he jumped on one of the beasts. It tried to shake him off, but he used his sword to pierce through the helmet and the skull, the Sword of the Creator irradiating pure energy. Next to him, Edelgard was avoiding the attacks of one of the beasts, but the fury of her adversary wasn´t allowing her to hit its weak points at the junctures of the armor.

"You bastard! Take this!" he shouted as he used the whip form of his weapon to aim at the beast´s head. It stopped the hit with its shield, but that was what she needed to use her axe to crush her foe to oblivion. She was catching her breath when he approached her.

"Together we are stronger, even if they have more devices, they won´t defeat us if we stay together" he said as he offered his hand to her.

"You are right about it, no matter what, we´ll overcome this battle…together"

…..

"Is it over now?" he wondered as the last of the intelligent beasts fell on its knees. Around him there were scattered the corpses of countless monsters, the market turned into a battlefield around him.

"Luckily enough, we don´t have any civilian casualties. The market is heavily damaged, but that can be repaired at least" Edelgard said as she observed the battlefield. "Myson, you won´t be causing problems anymore. It is over"

"Over? How foolish, from beginning to end. The battle is far from over" he said as dark aura started coming from the critically injured beast. "Your seals are removed, inherit the blood of your companions and erase everything from this existence!" Hearing his command, the partially melted helmet of the beast fell to the ground, revealing a fearsome appearance. The face of the beast was heavily deformed, two pair of jaws within its mouth, yet he could see some reminiscence with a human. The monster jumped on one of the fallen corpses, starting to devour it. As it did so parts of its heavily damaged armor started to fall, revealing a monstrous body which was quickly changing into something terrifying.

"A true opponent for your worth, Fell Star. Face the evolution or perish!" Myson shouted as he teleported.

"You, bastard!" Balthus angrily said as he tried to jump on him

"Balthus, careful!" he shouted as he pushed Balthus to the ground, avoiding a fireball aimed to the both of them. The beast had finished its transformation. It was no biped anymore, its body resembling a scaleless dragon.

"It hurts, please make it stopppppp!" the beast roared as it looked at him, the moment it did so, it charged at him with its jaws wide opened. He stopped the attack with the power of the sword of the Creator, the sword impacting against the teeth of the beast, which was trying its best to shallow him up.

"Spells at the beast! We need to counterattack!" Edelgard ordered as she approached him with her heavy shield and her axe. "I don´t know what you are, but the only thing that I can do is to release you from this earthly pain" she said as she released a charged hit to one of the limbs of the beast.

Catching its attention, the monster´s attack on him lost strength, which he used to jump on the beast´s back. The creature tried to stand on its feet, but it was welcome by a rain of magic spells, courtesy of Hubert and Hapi. Canalizing his energy into the Sword he cut through the chest of the beast, revealing a crest within it. He jumped to give the final blow, but his sword was stopped by the claws of the beast.

"I need help!" he shouted as he continued his struggle against the beast.

"Of course, Professor, we are friends after all" Balthus smiled as he came to his aid.

"You´ve always had a big mouth" Hapi said, but she was smiling.

"And like this the Ashen wolves are reunited once again" Yuri smiled as he used his sword to hit the beast on its hind legs.

"The Ashen wolves and her leader Constance"

"No matter the obstacle, we can overcome it" Edelgard said as her axe sliced through one of the monster´s arm, allowing him to finish it off, the moment the crest stone within the monster was broken the beast dissolved in black mist, complete silence falling on them.

…..

"I think I´ve had enough battles for the rest of my life. Professor, don´t ask me to sigh ever again. That was a dangerous bet. What would have happened to us if the monsters decided to help them instead of just joining the fight?"

"It was the only alternative to avoid a slaughter of innocents, but I understand how you feel. I won´t be abusing your situation anymore"

"That´s a promise, remember to keep it, okay?"

"Hey, Professor! That guy is still breathing!"

Baron Ochs was lying on the ground, a small pool of blood surrounding his body. What remained of his face was extremely pale, yet he was still breathing.

"Can you check on him, Hapi?"

"I can try" she said as she placed her hands on his chest, but after a few seconds her expression was darkened. "There is little I can do; this man is going to die"

"Monica, is that you?" Baron Ochs asked with a weak voice. "The Monica which I´ve been searching for so long….my dear daughter…Is….that you?" Baron Ochs asked as he touched her hair. "It is red, such a difficult to find color…is that you?" he asked again, his voice almost a beg.

Balthus was about to talk, but he was interrupted by Hapi.

"I´m right here father"

"I was finally able to find you…I knew…I knew that you were alive…I´m sorry daughter…I did many terrible things…You may hate me now"

"You did it out of love. I would never hate you"

"That´s what I wanted to hear…I´m happy…Promise me that you will take care of mum…She will be happy to see you again"

"Don´t worry, I will"

"Thank you…Monica" Baron Ochs said as his chest stopped to move.

"Why did you do it?"

"Why not, Balthus? Even if he committed mistakes in his life, he did those out of love. Wouldn´t you feel better if when you die someone tell you that you did the right thing?"

"I´ve honestly never thought about something like that"

"Take your time to consider it sometime. This world is already filled with enough coldness, a bit of light won´t be causing any harm. The poor man had already paid what he did with his life. I don´t hate him despite the trouble we had to suffer because of him. Someone will have to tell the widow about this"

"I´ll do it" Edelgard said as she approached. "What happened here won´t be forgotten, he was just a desperate man in search of someone he loved. Those who were responsible of this pain will pay for it"

"The nature of the human heart is really interesting. The way people act out of love is really intriguing. Good or not is another matter, though" Hubert commented as he looked at Edelgard for a second before looking at him. "It seems that those who had been slithering in the dark had taken quite a fixation with you. I would recommend being careful from now on. Even if you were able to escape from their traps, they are willing to commit any atrocities if that means they can get rid of you"

"You don´t have to worry about me, Hubert. I won´t let my guard down"

"It´s not a matter of being worried or not. If Lady Edelgard´s security is affected I will make sure to take measures on that matter. For now, I´ll have to spend some time checking the damages of the market. This show of force is more proper of an open battlefield"

"By the way, Yuri. What the hell were you up to? It was cool to see you appear from nowhere, but you haven´t told us yet, what were you doing at the capital?"

"Since we left the monastery I was searching for this little thing; the fetters of Dromi"

"Another relic? Yet somehow this one is a bit different from the others"

"It really is, it isn´t supposed to be used as a weapon; it is more like a tool. With it my movements are even faster" he said as he suddenly appeared behind them. "It is a good trick to have with you in case of trouble, although I would have been unable to find it without the help of Constance"

"When the Dagda-Brigid war happened, I heard confusing reports coming from the lands of Dagda. Rumors about a strange glove that had unnatural capabilities, such ancient item could be nothing but the fetters of Dromi, the favorite item of Dromi, the thief of ancient times. There are many tales about him, but the most important is about how he found it. It was said that he discovered a cave that guided him to the gates of hell and there he claimed it as its own. Naturally, the inhabitants of the depths tried to trap him but he was able to outsmart them. After those events he travelled across the entire world in the search of adventures and treasures. Perhaps his final resting place was located in Dagda"

"Who knows, although that happened a long time ago. Anyway, even if it was found in Dagda it finally ended up in the hands of Duke Gerth"

"Duke Gerth is the minister of Foreign affairs in the Empire. He played an important role back in the war against Dagda and Brigid" Edelgard commented as she observed the unknown relic.

"One way or another the news of such discovery must have landed in the ears of the guys we had been fighting. Duke Gerth´s territory was attacked a few days ago, although he survived in exchange of the relic. We´ve been searching for the culprits, luckily enough they don´t see to be exactly careful about their whereabouts, although I must admit that I didn´t expect to find any of you here"

"Baron Ochs was more likely pressured by the same group to give them a relic, it seems that they promised him the life of her daughter in exchange for the relic of Balthus"

"So those guys were after your relic and they tried to use that poor man to get mine? There is something I don´t like about it. Did you see the beasts they had with them? They are really up to something and I don´t like it a bit. Now that we talk about it, you seen quite changed Professor"

"Wasn´t it obvious, Balthus? His hair is completely different, his eyes too. What happened to you?"

"Last month we were searching for the murderers of my father and we found them in the sealed forest. We defeated them, but Solon sacrificed Kronya to imprison me in the Abyss"

"The sealed forest was the place where we found the Chalice of the beginnings. I knew that there was something odd with it" Yuri said as he took a closer look at him "And then what happened?"

"I received the power of the Goddess and I was able to return to this world"

"The power of the Goddess? I would laugh at it, but you sound pretty serious about it. I guess you are telling the truth" Yuri said as he scratched his head. "They tried to get rid of you back then, but their plans failed and know they tried to get rid of you again, it seems that they think about you as a menace to their existence. As long as you breath they will try to kill you"

"They can come and try, I won´t be killed by the likes of them"

"That´s the spirit!" Balthus laughed. "If they have problems with you, they have problems with me. They are just scum; they hide and only strike when they are feeling cocky. What a bunch of cowards"

"I think you are confounding cowardice with being cautious. We should be as well. They are able to control beasts and they use weapons different to the ones we are used to battle. They also seem obsessed with obtaining relics. They must be preparing for something but, but why two relics?" Yuri said as he looked at each of them.

"Why a man with a treasure wants two?" Hapi answered. "The more power they have the more they want. I´m glad we were able to stop them here and now, they look so similar to that lady…"

"Are there any reports of more robberies like this?" If they were searching for more relics, it wouldn´t be strange to hear rumors about it.

"Not as far as I know, although I wouldn´t relax because of it. Admitting the disappearance of a relic could cause many troubles to a noble. If something has happened, they must have kept silent about it, but that would explain many things. When I heard that the members of the western church tried to assault the mausoleum I was surprised, but if someone knew that the Sword of the Creator was located there…" Yuri said as he looked at his sword.

"Then the risky maneuver would have been worth it"

"Exactly" Yuri nodded at him.

"Those we found there were just the pawns, the real responsible are still roaming around this land. They used the members of the western Church to assault the mausoleum. If they succeeded, they would obtain the most powerful relic and if they failed, they would cause problems between both Churches" Edelgard said.

"And the Church quickly satisfied such plan with the execution of the prisoners and the war against the western Church. You could say that we have been doing their dirty job" Hubert chuckled.

"In the end we´ve been fooled by them, but they are growing bold. Something similar happened at Remire village, remember?" Edelgard said looking at him. "Of all places they could choose they decided to attack a village in front of the Church"

The events of the village came to his mind once again and with it the so-called Flame Emperor. The Flame Emperor said that he wasn´t involved and his way of acting back at those moments had been suspicious. Since the attempt of catching them with Dimitri there hadn´t be any new reports about his whereabouts, yet he knew he must be somewhere. Perhaps searching for him would bring some light to the whereabouts of the mysterious organization so focused on killing him, but it wasn´t the only mystery still in the shadows. He was certain that his bond with Sothis was the cause that they were so fixated with him, yet it was clear they weren´t the ones in the root of such connection.

"The board has been moving around all this time, but now I understand I´m being moved" he thought. "They must have a reason to hate the Church and they have connections within the different regions of Fódlan. We need to trap one of them to search for the truth" he said to them as he adjusted the belt of his sword. "A city without light, that´s the only thing I know, but what I saw and what actually exists could be completely different. Sothis, if you really are the Goddess of this world I´ll need to count on your strength to resolve this mystery" he said to himself.

"Professor, finally I´ve found you. What had happened here?" asked a shocked soldier of the Church.

"Monsters and thieves appeared, but we were able to neutralize them, what has happened?"

"I was commanded to bring this letter to you, sir" The knight said as he handed him a letter with a beautiful calligraphy.

"It seems that the ceremony will take place next week. In that case, I´ll have to return"

"Wyverns are prepared to bring you back as soon as possible to the monastery. I´ll accompany you to assure your safe return"

"We´ll accompany you then. A ceremony, I wouldn´t want to miss something like that and I´m sure that there will be enough stuff to eat"

"You are just so simpleminded" Constance sighed. "I will take this situation as an opportunity to learn about the mysteries within the monastery. Of course, with Lady Edelgard´s permission"

"I wouldn´t refuse your presence, although the opinion that matters is the archbishop´s"

"Very well, it seems that we don´t have time to waste. I´ll be picking the faster"

"Wait a second Yuri, don´t get so cocky, how troublesome" Hapi said as she followed him.


	66. The throne of knowledge

"What are these clothes?" he asked as he looked at his own reflection on the mirror.

"They suit you well, you have nothing to worry about. I thought that these clothes would be suitable for the ceremony that it´s going to take place tonight" Rhea said as she looked at him with true devotion. His clothes were rather unique; a contrast between light and shadows yet they were quite comfortable. They were also sturdier than they appeared to be, yet he felt as if he was wearing plain clothes not an armor.

"It might be a light armor, but its quality surpasses most medium armors, although you have nothing to fear, the Church and myself will make sure that everyone stays safe. I won´t allow any problems to happen today"

"You said that you attended the ceremony once before. Tell me, how was it?"

"It was at what appears to be a lifetime ago. It happened when I assumed my position as the head of the Knights of Seiros, that was the time when I was able to hear the words of our beloved mother" Rhea said with a dreamy look. "However, this is not the time to talk about the past, but about the future. The world of Fódlan has lived in harmony for many years thanks to the teachings of the Goddess. It is true that there have been some problems along the way, but the existence of the Church has been the key to enhance this world. The Goddess entrusted the Church of Seiros with the wellbeing of this world and we, the guardians of the faith, have been loyal to that old oath for centuries. When you receive the revelation of our creator, I have the hope that you will feel the same about it"

He closed his eyes for a moment. "A world of true peace" he thought; it may sound like an impossible utopia, but deep within him he wished for a world where the problems his students had been facing disappeared, although he wasn´t so sure that the Church was the road to such objective.

"I have a question"

"Feel free to ask me anything"

"Do you think that this world needs to change or is it good as it is?"

"That is a really difficult question. Of course, we can always aim to higher heights, but how can be sure that the measures will take won´t worsen the state of this world? The reality is that this world is imperfect, because its rules are made by humans which by definition are gullible and corrupt. However, those closer with our creator can guide the rest to the path of rectitude. The lamp that has been guiding the people of Fódlan is and will be the Church of Seiros. Our mere existence during centuries is the firm witness that our actions had contributed to the greater good of this land. You can compare it to the role you have assumed with your students. You have battled with them and you have guided them through their hardships. The Church assumes the same role with the entire humanity"

"And what should I do to those who oppose the Church?"

"You already know the answer of that question" Rhea was still smiling but her eyes grew colder. "Revolutionaries will only bring war and famine for the sake of their own ideals. They will cry about justice and a better world to live in, but in the end, they are only interested in their own petty ambitions. Lord Lonato fought for his ideals, but in the process unnecessary sacrifices were made. The seek of power corrupts even the noblest soul, that´s why it is important to create a balance between the different visions of the world and the Church had assumed such role for centuries. Any more questions?"

"I´ll do the best I can"

"I would never expect less from you. It will be an honor to accompany you in this ceremony"

…

"Wow, Teach is going to receive a revelation from the Goddess; perhaps if I dye my hair green the Goddess would whisper something in my ear"

"You don´t sound very convinced about it, Claude. Are you having a crisis of faith?" she asked with a smile on her face, although she was feeling extremely nervous. In a few hours everything would have changed, there was no turning back. She already knew the location of the throne room, but to access the place the defense mechanism must be deactivated first. Her soldiers were already nearby, waiting in the hidden passaged she had been searching during months.

"Well, I wouldn´t consider myself a pious man, but if something interesting happens I´m all for it, although don´t you think that Rhea is in a hurry? She is really looking forward to this ceremony as if it was her birthday or something"

"Claude, after all these months you keep speaking like that in a monastery. It is clear that it must be a great event for all the members of the Church"

"Are you included within their ranks, Dimitri?" Claude laughed. "You look tired. Are you too excited about this?" Dimitri had eyebags under his eyes and he appeared to be tired, yet the fire of his eyes told her otherwise.

"I´ve been thinking about many things, but I won´t annoy you with my mundane problems. Do you think that they will let everyone accompany the Professor? He has been our mentor after all"

"I don´t know, but even if I´m not allowed I might happen to sneak into the room" Claude said with a mischievous smile.

"You shall not have such need, Claude" The archbishop´s voice said. When she looked at her, her heart almost stopped when she noticed his presence. His clothes had been changed to an armor with an excellent quality, giving him the appearance of a king of old.

"Forgive my words, I was just joking" Claude said with a light bow, before looking at the Professor with a surprised look. "Wow, you look so changed. Do I have to call you your Majesty or something?"

"No need of such formalities with me, Claude. I haven´t changed" Byleth smiled

"The Professor has talked with me about the ceremony and I agree that the presence of his beloved students should be allowed. However, because of security reasons, I think it would be advisable to limit the number of students able to attend the ceremony. All the students of the Black Eagles should be allowed since the Professor had been their tutor during these months and I will also allow five more students from the other houses to attend the ceremony. Only five in total, I know that some of you will complain about this, but I wish to preserve the security of all of us. The Professor thought in particular about you and Dimitri and I agree with him. I think that it is a good deal for you Claude. That way you won´t be facing an expulsion for entering without proper permission"

"I´m sorry about that, Lady Rhea, my apologies and I feel honored by that. Only five of us then, uh. Well, in my house I don´t see that many students interested to be honest, although the one I would choose would be…"

"Me" Lysithea said as she approached them. "I´m intrigued by the so-called ceremony and since it may be the first and last time I´ll be able to witness something like that I want to take this opportunity. Besides, I´m thankful because of the Professor´s help. He has really treated me like anyone else despite my age difference and I wouldn´t mind spending some time with him or Edelgard during the ceremony"

"And not with me? That´s harsh" Claude laughed. "Well, the choice has been made in my case. Dimitri feel free to choose the remaining two"

"If her Highness comes I´ll go as well" Dedue said approaching them. He was accompanied by Felix, quite an unusual pairing.

"I´ll go not because of you, boar, but because of the Professor. We aren´t done yet with all our enemies and it might able to take advantage of that situation to improve my abilities"

"You were nicer when you were younger. I wondered what happened to that boy"

"It died, but now it isn´t the time to talk about the past, not in front of everyone"

"Forgive me, it seems that the matter is settled them" Dimitri sighed. "Professor, I appreciate your trust and I won´t betray it" Dimitri said with a light bow.

"Oh, so you were here" Yuri said accompanied by the rest of the Ashen wolves. "Rhea asked us to take care of the Abyss while she was with all of you, so no need to apologize. You will have plenty of time to tell us your experience at the banquet"

"Wine and a good piece of meat are a great way to start a conversation" Balthus laughed.

"Thank you for your understanding. With you in charge of the Abyss, there is nothing to fear" Rhea smiled. "The time of the ceremony is quickly approaching; shall we start going?" Rhea asked as she offered him her arm. Even if she knew that that day would turn them into enemies, she couldn´t avoid feeling a bit jealous at the sight of it.

….

The sun had already set when they entered the cathedral.

"I´m feeling a bit nervous about this" Bernadetta muttered

"You have nothing to fear, Bernie. The Professor is here and this place is well protected"

"Dorothea is right, Bernadetta. It is more probable that you die falling down the stairs that being murdered by someone"

"Come on, Linhardt, if you are trying to encourage her, you are doing it pretty bad"

"I was just being realist, but yes, everything will be fine" Linhardt yawned as he lost interest in the conversation.

"Are you always like this, guys?" Claude laughed as he continued walking.

"Everyone is different, but that´s why we are stronger. The Professor has made us understand that we are stronger together. I´ll apply that knowledge when I return to my land"

"Brigid, right, I would like to visit it someday"

They were in front of the statues of the saints of the church. Rhea bowed before them an adopted a praying gesture.

"Protectosr of the world of the living, open the way to true light" The moment she said those words the statues started to move, revealing a hidden room, strange glyphs on its floor.

One by one they started to enter the room in front of them, a giant crest of flames drawn on one of the walls caught her attention. When the last of them entered the room, the path whence they came close again, leaving them trapped.

"Benevolent mother, I fear nothing but the lack of sunlight. Bring me closer to you and I shall remain under your embrace, guide me to the true light" With those words the platform started to descend by itself. Despite its weigh it was descending quite swiftly as if had just been recently used. All of them were completely quiet, some of them surprised and some of them scared.

She was starting to wonder if they were heading into the center of the earth when the platform finally stopped. In front of them there was a statue of a monstrous size, only its feet could be seen properly. There were no torches there, yet windows around them made her feel like they were outside. It was strange feeling like that when they were in the depths of the monastery.

"We have finally arrived" Rhea said as she approached the feet of the statue and touched them, as she did so, a secret entrance was unlocked, a green light coming from the unlocked area.

"Now there is nothing to fear. The Goddess knows that we are trustworthy and won´t oppose our entrance. However, please show your respect as you do so. We are entering her earthly home, after all.

She was scared that the beatings of her heart could be heard as she tried to fight her nervousness off, but the archbishop only had eyes for Byleth.

"Please, protector of the Goddess, enter the room. You deserve to have such honor after all"

"Understood, follow me"

"And now the end of this farce will begin" she thought as she entered behind them. She knew that Rhea was up to something and she didn´t like a bit her focus on Byleth. With a quick look to Hubert, she knew that everything was ready.

"The time has come" It was ironic but she felt relieved and stressed at the same time as she entered the sacred room.

…

"This is the throne where Sothis was said to rule this world in ancient times" Rhea said as they approached the center of the room. Looking at the giant throne before him made him feel sad about the lost of her dear friend.

"Sothis I have so many things that I want to ask you" he thought.

"The fact that there was such space in the depths of the monastery is highly surprising" Edelgard commented next to him, her eyes alert. After the events of that night he hadn´t been able to confront her alone, but he had the hope that after the ceremony ended, he could set the matter of his feelings once and for all.

"If you told me something like this existed, I would have thought you were joking. We really are in front of true history" Claude said as he examined everything, his eyes shining at the sight of infinite mysteries.

"The throne is really impressive; a place of great responsibilities. If the Professor is the one chosen by the Goddess, his burdens will be heavy, but we´ll be there to assist him" Dimitri said with a short nod to him.

"To those with the favor of the Goddess a vision of the future shall be granted to them. You have come a far way; you have battled and you have overcome many hardships. Looking at you it is clear that you have the favor of the Goddess, creator of everything. Tell me, dear. Do you recall this place?"

"I do"

"Finally; my prayers seen to have succeeded. I have awaited a long time for this" Rhea said, tears about to leave her eyes. "Please, claim the throne as the champion of the Goddess and a vision shall be granted to you"

"Be safe" Edelgard whispered to him as he started to approach the throne. As he touched it, he felt it was warm as if someone had been sitting there not a long time ago.

"Now close your eyes. Fear not the dark and let the light of your faith enlighten you"

As he did so, he could feel a strange energy flowing from the throne to him, a small itching on his sword hand.

"Can you see something? Try to search at the depths of your own soul. The soul is the ocean where our life comes and only through our souls, we can approach our creator"

He could see what appeared to be a person in the distance. As she grew closer his heart stopped; an intense happiness overwhelming him.

"Sothis is that you? It feels like ages since the last time we´ve seen each other. I…"

"Silly boy. Why are you taking a nap at a time like this? The time of great decisions is about to come and remember, whatever you do I´ll be by your side" she said as she disappeared once again before his very own eyes.

…

"It should has happened something by now. Why…"

"Enough of this!"

When he opened his eyes again, the situation had completely changed. Soldiers were arriving from the entrance of the room, a red sigil on their chests.

"Those forces are the Flame Emperor´s troops. How could they enter this place?" asked as shocked Ferdinand.

"Because I showed them the way" Edelgard said as she approached the troops.

"So you were the Flame Emperor…How could I be so blind" Claude muttered.

"I am" hearing those words coming from her mouth hurt him more than a sword aimed to the heart.

"Why Edelgard…" He asked in disbelief.

"I told you, I´ll do anything to follow my path…even if that means facing you on the battlefield" the tone of her voice was confident, but there was sadness in her eyes.

"So you have been deceiving us all this time….Abusing our trust while committing so many atrocities. Aren´t you ashamed of your very own existence?" Dimitri said with his eyes filled with pure rage. "Why did you kill them all?"

"I don´t know what…"

"LIAR! Your hands are stained with blood, the blood of countless innocents and my own family. I´ll cut your head off and put it on a spike in front of the gates of Enbarr!" Dimitri shouted as he started charging at the soldiers, but he was stopped by Dedue and Felix. Even with the two of them, Dimitri was doing his best to break free.

"Let me go! She is the one I´ve been searching for so long! I need to avenge them or they will never forgive me!"

"Calm down, you boar!"

"Your majesty, I understand your pain but we have to fight together if we want to succeed" Dedue said as he looked at him.

"My hands are indeed stained by the blood of others, but you are mistaken about your assumptions. The root of your suffering and mine isn´t so different, Dimitri, but I doubt that you would understand" she said before looking at him. "Professor, I won´t justify myself, but I wish there is no fight between us. I leave you with the rest of the students" she said before looking at her troops.

"Take the crest stones from the tombs. Those who oppose us…eliminate them"

"It seems that the schoolyear has come to an unexpected end. Professor, it was an honor while it lasted" Hubert said while bowing before disappearing in purple mist.

"Edel…" muttered a saddened Dorothea as a reaction to the words of Edelgard.

"Did you use us all this time? I thought we were friends" Petra said as she unsheathed her weapon.

"I thought of you as a friend, Edelgard, but I won´t restrain myself if I have to resort to my magical capabilities" Lysithea said as she started to charge her powerful spells.

"The hell are you doing, Edelgard. Don´t be with the bad guys. This is a nonsense"

"I have to agree with you on this Caspar, but it seems that we´ve been played all this time, but you´ve committed a fatal mistake. If we remain together, we´ll be to defeat anyone, even you" Ferdinand said with renewed determination in his eyes.

"Ferdie…"

"I´m with Ferdinand. I´ll make you sure that no one of you gets killed"

"I hate fighting but this is a fight I can´t run away of"

"How outrageous, how dare you to commit such devious acts in this sacred place. You are betraying your very own ancestors with your evil acts" Rhea was extremely furious, her eyes glowing like fire. "Professor, the treasures within this room are of great importance to the Church". "I will slow them down with my magic, but you must be the one to lead your students. We have to defend this place at all costs" Rhea said as she casted a spell that extended thin ice through the entire area. "They will not be able to escape using unconventional methods"

"Edelgard, the hell are you thinking? Ugh this has certainly messed everything I´ve been working for" Claude lamented as he prepared his bow.

"The time for questions will have to wait. For now, the only thing we can do is to prevent them from raiding the tombs" He said as he prepared himself for combat. He couldn´t believe what was happening in front of him but if his students were in danger, he didn´t have any other option, but to prepare to fight.

Some of the imperial soldiers were already raiding the tombs. Unsheathing his weapon, he approached one of the soldiers accompanied by Ferdinand and Petra.

"Why is Edelgard doing something like this? Of all people, the fact that she was the mastermind behind the problems of the last months is truly depressing. How was I so blind?" Ferdinand said as his lance met the halberd of one of the soldiers.

"Was she really?" he wondered. The Flame Emperor appeared to be on bad terms with the likes of Solon. The times they've talked about that matter she appeared to be sincere about her thoughts. With a quick look among the forces of the Empire he could see that the monsters were accompanied by soldiers that could only be members of the faction so interested in destroying him. "No matter what I have to sacrifice I´ll follow my path, even if that means facing you" her words came to his mind as he fought to recover the crest stones from the tomb.

To the other side Dimitri and Claude were leading the attack. While Claude was carefully taking down their enemies, Dimitri was using his great strength to kill them. The brute force of his hits was so strong that his spear easily shattered, but he continued fighting with a spear of one of their fallen enemies.

"By the way, where is Hubert?" asked Caspar, a few meters away from him. It was true, since the beginning of the battle Hubert had disappeared, but that could mean anything.

"I´ll take care of the beasts, advance through the sides and recover the crest stones!" he shouted as the first of the beasts approached him. Compared to the beasts he had been facing a few days ago, these ones were similar to the ones that had attacked them at the old chapel. Avoiding a blast, he jumped on the beast as he hit the weak spot of its neck. He felt that the skin was tougher compared to his previous encounters, but the lack of proper armor made his attacks quite effective.

Slow but steady they were approaching the other side of the room. Edelgard had been observing them in silence, but looking at her face she knew she didn´t plan to back down.

"I expected nothing less from you, my Teacher" she said as she jumped from the stairs where she was. "I have no excuses to make, I sincerely thank you for everything you have done to me"

"But why Edelgard? Of all people why allying with them? You could have searched for…"

"A more peaceful way? I wish there was one, but reality is always harder than expected. Those in power will never give it up in a peaceful manner; they will fight to perpetuate the system. I lack the strength to break the wheel of history alone and even if history despises me I´ll be the one tat started the change of Fódlan once and for all"

"Was it all a lie? All the memories that we made together". Looking at her, he could see that for a moment her confident look disappeared, leaving only sadness behind.

"It was all true…from beginning…to end"

"The next time we danced I thought it would be different" he said as he avoided her hit and counterattacked.

"Me too; perhaps in another life" Edelgard said with a sad smile as their weapons clashed. Even though they were surrounded by combats it felt as if it was just the two of them as they continued their dance of steel.

"You´ve learnt a lot" he said as he parried one of her attacks.

"I guess that I had a good mentor"

Preventing a low hit, he jumped on her. She tried to fight him off, but he immobilized her with his hands.

"You fought well, but its over now" he said as he looked at her directly into her eyes. He had many things to ask, but now he didn´t have any time left.

"It seems that my way ends here. I actually…" But her words were interrupted by the quick arrival of the archbishop.


	67. End and beginning

"You have fought well Edelgard"

"Even at a time like this you haven´t changed a bit, even if I´m not the one I used to be" She said as she caught her breath. The mere thought was somehow relieving.

"Edelgard" Byleth said grabbing her arm. "Did you have anything to do with my father´s death?"

"I swear to you that his death was unexpected to me as well. If I had known I would have drowned all of them in their blood"

He looked at her, his eyes piercing hers. She then felt warmth in her body.

"Healing magic" she thought. "My Teach.."

But before she could end her phrase, he was returning to the archbishop´s side.

…

"You disappoint me Edelgard. I have never expected that an heir of House Hresvelg could do such an unforgivable crime…." Rhea said, her voice made of ice, lacking her usual warmth.

Edelgard was a few meters from him, on her knees.

"My Teacher, do you understand why do I have to follow this path?" her eyes focused on him.

"Finish her off, Professor. Her mere existence is a threat to the peace of all of Fódlan. We cannot let her impure heart beat any longer"

"She is the emperor. There must be other…"

"It is a command, Professor" Rhea said, her voice a whip. "For the greater good sacrifices must be made. For true peace in this forsaken land"

Hearing her words, he recalled something that had just happened a few weeks ago.

"Why didn´t you order his execution?"

"Instead of his arrest? Aegir is corrupt and is one of the responsible of the suffering of my family, but he isn´t the mastermind behind all of it. Killing him would only satisfy my personal vengeance, nothing more"

He closed his eyes, the words still resonating in his head. As he did so he could also hear the sound of a heartbeat.

He then approached her.

…

She could hear him approaching. Her heart was furiously beating. She then closed her eyes.

"How dare you!"

"I´m sorry Rhea, but this is not the path I seek"

She opened her eyes. Byleth was standing in front of her, acting as a shield between her and the archbishop"

When he realized she was looking at him he smiled and reached for her hand. "Can you stand by your own, Edelgard? I hope you are ok"

"Is this a dream?" she thought. All this time she had prepared herself to follow her path without him, yet he had chosen her over the archbishop.

"My Teacher, thank you, but are you sure that…no…now it´s not the time to talk"

"My heartfelt thanks, Professor" Hubert said appearing behind them. "There are no words that can express my gratitude. I must apologize Lady Edelgard, breaking the spell of the archbishop proved to be costly"

"Professor, why?! Why do you side with her?" Dimitri cried with a painful voice. "You might have deceived the Professor with your tricks, but you will pay for your crimes! I´ll hang your head from the gates of Enbarr!" he shouted, throwing a javelin to her.

Pushing her aside Byleth blocked the attack.

"Dimitri, calm down!" Claude shouted.

"What do you think you are doing?" Felix said, both of them trying to stop Dimitri.

"So that is your decision, you are just another disappointment, an affront against the Goddess" Rhea was looking at Byleth with crazy eyes "Reaching for her hand, despite the assault committed in this holy place is a sin against the Goddess herself. This sin will be paid with your blood. I will cut open your chest and retrieve your heart and what is mine!"

"Retrieve what is hers?" she wondered.

"If Sothis agreed with your decision it is clear that something would have happened by now"

"Do you find is wise opposing your creator like this? You owe me your mere existence. Your mother was my creation and the blood that flows through your veins is my own!"

"Even if that´s true I have a will of my own. I don´t want to fight against you, Rhea"

"Yet you defy my authority. Fate surely enjoys torturing me, but your betrayal has enlightened me" she said as she approached the throne. "I´ll retrieve what is mine and I will be one with my mother; that way this world will experience unending happiness" she said as she placed her hand on the throne. "Mother, grant me your strength, to destroy the enemies of the divine" as she said those words Rhea´s body was engulfed in green flames which quickly turned into blue fire.

"Protect the emperor!" shouted the remaining forces of Edelgard.

"Byleth Eisner, you might have divine power, but you can´t compare to us, descendants of the Goddess" Rhea said as she extended her hands; a sword and a shield coming to her aid.

"The sword of Seiros" Edelgard muttered.

"Indeed, it is" Rhea said as she blew upon it, the moment she did the sword grew longer, acquiring a crystal blue color. "Even if she mastered all elements Sothis always had a higher affinitive with water, and from water comes ice. I´ll shatter all of you as the demons you are"

"Stay away!" Edelgard shouted but it was too late. With a single move of the sword the air around Rhea froze, annihilating what remained of her army.

She didn´t have time to react as Rhea jumped on them, but her sword was stopped by Byleth´s.

"Petulant child! Taking pity of you has proven to be my greatest mistake and I shall correct it here and now" She could feel an immense amount of energy accumulating within her.

"I won´t let my life be dictated by others, I won´t die today!"

An explosion followed that shattered the ground near both combatants, the blast was so intense that she was sent several meters away, even though she was wearing heavy armor.

"Lady Edelgard!"

Both swords had fallen to the ground, but Rhea was jumping on Byleth which he was still trying to get up, their bodies rolling through the floor. Byleth was grabbing Rhea´s claws while she was trying to open his chest. Without thinking it twice she charged at her using all her power into a brutal hit to the chest of Rhea.

"Ugh!" Rhea said as she collapsed to the ground a few meters from them.

"My Teacher, are you ok?" she worriedly asked. The area around his chest was covered in blood, but the open wound was quickly disappearing.

"Don´t worry, I´ll get out of this"

"That power, that is the power of the Crest of Flames. Impossible, there can´t be two of them…unless our ancient enemies have been acting in the shadows. Betrayal after betrayal" Rhea said with bitter laugher. "A mortal will never be able to wield such power in an appropriate manner. I will make sure to annihilate this anomaly" Rhea said, her injuries nowhere to be seen.

They were dazzled by a green light and in front of them wasn´t Rhea, but a giant dragon covered in ivory scales. "That must be the immaculate one. The true face of our enemy finally revealed" Hubert said as he started casting protective barriers.

"Yes, Rhea and her kind have been ruling this land beneath the shadows for centuries. Rhea is the leader behind that farce" she said, somehow relieved to tell the truth.

"Leave this place, it isn´t safe anymore" Byleth said as he adopted a defensive position, stopping with his sword a blast that was aimed at him.

"If we have to leave; we´ll leave together" she said as she grabbed his hand. After all that had happened, she wasn´t willing to let him go.

"Hey, wait for us!" shouted the members of the Black Eagles. Seeing all of them running would have been comical in other time, but fear and confusion were written all over their faces.

"Hubert guide them to the stables; we need to leave this place as fast as possible"

"I don´t get what´s going on!" Casper shouted as he chased them. "Are we the good guys or the bad ones?"

"I think it really depends on the point of view. You owe us an explanation for this Edelgard"

Linhardt said.

"I´ll do so, but only after we reach a safe place" She couldn´t avoid smiling at their conversation. Despite everything that had happened, they were still treating her casually. However, not everyone was following them. Flayn, who had accompanied them up to the tomb, was nowhere to be seen like Lysithea and Claude while Felix and Dedue were struggling to calm Dimitri down"

Rhea was approaching them quickly, her jaws increasingly brilliant.

"Only a bit more!" she shouted as they arrived to the platform whence, they came. The shaking ground as they went up was the proof that it was too close.

"The rest must be yet unaware about what has happened. All of you go to the stables and pick the quickest mount that you can find. I´ll use my Pegasus to act as a lure"

"In that case I´ll accompany you since only me and Hubert know where are we going"

"Can´t I go to search some things, Edie? This is all sudden I need to…"

"If you want to stay, I won´t stop you, but don´t expect me to wait for you" Hubert said.

"So harsh…" Dorothea complained.

"I didn´t know that Rhea was so scary. I need to escape" Bernadetta cried.

"It´s a pity that we had to leave so early, a dragon would surely be a boost to my own investigations"

"How can you think about something like that at a time like this?!"

"For now, we just have to leave" Byleth said as the platform finally stopped.

They divided their forces in two; Hubert and the rest headed to the east area, while they ran towards the main bridge.

"There are many things that you will have to explain to me, after we reach a safe place" he said as his grip over her hand grew tighter.

"I agree" she replied, incapable of looking at him. Since the moment she had reached for her, her heart had been beating like crazy. She couldn´t believe that she had chosen to defend her over his predetermined fate. "Here I thought I had to fight alone, yet I was wrong all this time"

"Professor, I didn´t expect to see you so early. Has something happened?" Seteth asked, interrupting her thoughts. They were still in the middle of the bridge. The security perimeter was still in place, troops to the other side of the bridge.

"We ended sooner than expected"

"In that case where is Rhea?"

"She…" his words were interrupted by a roar that came from the depths of the monastery. The moment it happened, Seteth prepared his lance to attack.

"Detain them!"

A war horn sounded, soldiers quickly approaching from both sides.

"We are trapped" she muttered, but a stronger grip of her hand made her look at him.

"Do you trust me?" he asked as he climbed to one of the sides of the bridge.

"I do" she whispered.

"In that case, let´s go" he said as they jumped off the bridge into the Abyss beneath them. Her heart was beating like crazy when she felt something soft under her.

"When did you…?"

"When a bond between a Pegasus and a rider is made our minds act as one" he said as he cherished the neck of his mount.

Listening to his explanation she couldn't avoid laughing.

"I´ve forgotten how much I loved being free" she said as they left behind the monastery, the starts in the sky watching them.

…..

"I need to talk with you, Edelgard; in private" he said as he looked at Hubert. They had just arrived to a secret base of the empire, all of them were exhausted, but they were luckily alive. Hubert was about to protest, but was stopped by a movement of Edelgard´s hand.

"I agree, after all that has happened you deserve an answer to all your questions. Hubert, please, leave us alone. Make sure that our companions get some rest, I´ll have to talk with them later"

"As you wish, emperor" Hubert said with a rigid bow before leaving.

"The circumstances have quickly changed in a matter of days" she started to say.

"However, the assault to the throne room was only the final step of a long time ago prepared conspiracy, right? Since when were you preparing for it?"

"It started way before our paths crossed in Remire. The illness of my father and the control of the Empire by Lord Arundel and Aegir were at its apex. After the experimentations I suffered, I promised myself the time of retribution would come to them, but first I needed to guarantee my own survival. My purpose in Garreg Mach was to collect information about the Church. I knew that Solon was already working as a spy at the monastery and I thought that it would be advisable to have my own informant"

"Jeritza"

"Exactly. He started working at the monastery by recommendation from the Empire. Arundel thought he was gaining a new tool, but he has only been loyal to me. However, even if I had a confidant I would always be under the close watch of Solon. Making him our professor was key to avoid raising unnecessary questions about our exchanges so I designed beforehand a plan to scare off one of the professors"

"So, the bandit attack was of your doing. The chief of the bandits said something about wanting to kill some nobles. Was also that in your plans?"

"It wasn´t, but if I hadn´t told him something like that even an idiot like him would have started to have doubts about the purpose of the plan. We were accompanied by the knights of Seiros; a group of bandits would´ve been easily defeated by them. If he was caught, he would just say he was ordered to kill some nobles, the original plan safe"

"But it didn´t go as planned. You, Claude and Dimitri were separated from the group"

"Actually, it was Claude the one that left the group as Dimitri followed him. I knew that there was a group of mercenaries in one of the villages nearby so I decided to indirectly guide them to that place. I´m glad that I did it" she smiled.

"But wouldn´t have been better for you if they were killed? They are the heirs of their respective nations, if they died during the attack everyone would have thought it was just a tragic accident"

"You´ve just sounded like Hubert" Edelgard sighed. "It is true that it could grant me some benefits, but chaos is the last thing I desire. Chaos would only bring more power to Arundel and their lackeys. They already have infested the Kingdom with their devious presence and they don´t lack allies in the Alliance. Killing them would've only brought them more power; the last thing I wanted to do"

"Lord Arundel; when was he killed?"

"Back when I was at the kingdom. His change of behavior was really violent. Thales is the one that killed him. He is the leader of the Agarthans"

"The Agarthans. Solon, Kronya…all of them have in common their hatred against the Goddess" he said as the blurry images of some of his visions came to his mind. "Their hatred is the source of their power"

"They want to rule this world. They want to replace a tyrant to put themselves in power, continuing the cycle of tyranny that has infested this land for ages"

"In that case they must be eliminated, they will only bring more suffering"

"And they will, but even if their plans have backfired most of the time, they know how to keep their secrets well protected. Their base is still unknown to us, but Hubert is confident he will eventually find its location. We are in the middle of a battlefield between two ancient forces. The children of the Goddess are the current rulers of the world and they´ve allowed this land to rot" Edelgard said as she looked to the outside world through one of the windows. "Those who hide themselves in the shadows are power hungry and will certainly cause more harm than good. This war isn´t about the Empire against the Church; it is about the destruction of these ancient foes. Without them, the world will be finally liberated from this poison"

"You are planning to make them clash with each other so you can get rid of both of them"

"Once they outlive their usefulness, they will face their fate. Rhea had the opportunity to face them, but she chose a false peace. Her inactivity had allowed their forces to grow stronger and they´ve been causing problems all over the land. The death of my family or the tragedy of Duscur are mere examples of what they are capable of. She had her chance, but now it is the time to give a fresh air to this land"

"We aren´t talking about a mere group of bandits. You´ve seen what they can do, they must have spies all over the land to make sure that they know every move we make. Even if you could surprise them with your secret plans for the coronation that doesn´t mean that they will be so blind to a threat about their very own existence"

"I´m sure that Thales and their lackeys aren´t blind about this, but they think that they can handle the situation. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. That´s the principle they are applying, the same I do. Each one of us is preparing their knives to strike the other down. But things got even more interesting when the archbishop named you as the new Professor, an unknown player entering this battle in the shadows. I was intrigued by you since the night the bandits attacked us and that only increased when I realized you were the bearer of the Crest of Flames"

"Both of us were experimented" he said, almost to himself.

"Nemesis died a thousand of years ago and didn´t have any offspring. My body was tortured in order to obtain the power of the mystic crest, but in your case the proceeding must have been different, yet you ended developing the very same crest I wield. Do you understand why they committed such atrocities over my body?" Edelgard asked as she showed before him her own crest of flames.

"It is the only crest capable of controlling the Sword of the Creator"

"Exactly. I was the person supposed to wield such weapon, but the sword chose you. With such weapon on your side you were capable of overcoming anything. You turned into the light of hope I needed, but at the same time your mere existence was a major threat to the likes of Thales"

"That´s why they sent Kronya, to avoid a possible alliance between me and you"

"Yes, they needed to keep an eye between me and you. All these months I´ve been handling this problem, although the worst outcome happened"

"The Tragedy of Remire" he muttered.

"Why in all places they would conduct an experiment next to the powerful Church? The objective of their plan wasn´t to experiment on the villagers but to frame the Flame Emperor. Jeritza was there because Thales ordered me to send him for a task. I didn´t expect that such task would be to be complicit of such crimes"

"And it somehow worked. When you appeared as the Flame Emperor, I thought you were the responsible of it, yet you appeared in front of us without weapons. IT was strange that you risked your own life because of it"

"I did it without thinking. Hubert was really mad at me, but I needed to do something about it. I wanted to tell you my fears and hopes, but that event created within me the fear that you will turn me down. And then, the next tragedy burned down that bridge"

"The death of my father"

"Yes, those dreadful events were the ones that destroyed any chance I had to explain you everything, but even if that was the case, seeing you devastated was what really hurt me. Losing someone you hold dear is a feeling that it´s familiar to me. I didn´t want you to crumble, yet I felt powerless"

"I´m sorry I wasn´t my usual self. When I heard that they were near us last month I risked everything for the sake of vengeance"

"I can´t really blame you for that reaction and I´m glad that Solon and Kronya met their end, but what happened to you? You told me that the Goddess gave you strength, but how could that happen?"

"She had been inside my head all this time. We could talk to each other freely and she aided me in times of need"

"The Goddess was inside you?" Edelgard asked surprised. "But you are talking about it in the past, what happened?"

"We were trapped in the void, in what appeared to be the former capital of the Agarthan civilization. There we fought against an enemy we couldn´t overcome until she fused with my body. She granted me her powers and thanks to it I was able to return"

"That explains the changes that have happened to your body, the moment you said you received the powers of the Goddess I thought you would side with Rhea no matter what. After all, she is one of the children of the Goddess"

"One of them? Do you mean that Seteth and Flayn are as well?"

"As far as I know they are the only ones, but only Rhea is the true menace to the fate of Fódlan"

"That brings us to the assault to the Throne Room"

"You are right. The Crest stones located there have an incredible amount of energy. My objective was to retrieve them, but to do so the defensive mechanisms of the room had to be deactivated first"

"Your plans had only a fatal mistake, your lack of trust in others was what made them backfire. You should have opened your heart. It might sound like a naïve advice, but I have the feeling that your path would have been easier if you were able to trust"

"You speak the truth and I´m sorry that I didn´t reveal any of this to you until now. All these weeks I had fear, fear that revealing my hopes and fears would turn you into a new enemy, yet doing nothing would have ended up in the same way. Hubert advised me to get rid of you. He told me that you were a hiltless sword, a sword that could be a blessing or a curse and from a rational point of view I did understand his words. When you collapsed after returning from the Abyss, Hubert was willing to end your life there yet I ordered him to let you live"

"Why? Why would you do something like that? If I had sided with Rhea your path might have ended in that room. Why would you risk your dreams and hopes for a hiltless sword?"

"Because I love you, and even it that was the most rational solution I was unable to do so" she said as she finally looked at him directly.

"So, what happened in that garden…"

"It was my way to at least have some memories of you. I´m sorry if I left you confuse, but the more time I spent with you the more doubts I had about the path I was seeking. In the end Hubert is right, I´m just a naïve girl that just wants a normal life"

He walked forward her, placing his hands over her shoulders.

"Byl…?" she didn´t have time to end her question as his lips met hers. Her skin was warmth and he felt like he was drowning in her sweet fragrance. He could feel her arms surrounding him from behind, making him feel alive.

After what appeared to be an eternity, it finally ended as both of them looked at each other.

"I accept those feelings" he said with a smile.

"I…I´ve never expected something like this to happen" Edelgard said a single tear leaving her eye. "I´m afraid that all of this is just a dream and that when I open my eyes there will be no one to my side"

"Don´t worry" he said as he embraced her from behind. "It is real, like the air we breathe. You said that you would follow your path even if that meant your own demise. Instead of dying for an ideal let´s live following it"

"Yes, even if death comes one day, let´s live for now" she said as they looked to the outside world through the window.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sothis is the star that precedes the annual flooding of the Nile. That and the descriptions about the water of desperation made me think about her affinity with water. Rhea also had that power, but she is capable of turning the water she creates into ice. In SS her awakened form had ice attacks as well so that´s the connection I made. Hope this isn´t very confusing.


	68. Outset of a power struggle

"So that´s what you were planning all along" Linhardt said as she looked at her. "The immaculate one and the creation of the Church of Seiros can´t be truly understood without the other so I think it is clear that Rhea is the immaculate one of the legends of old. In that case the current system has been not only tolerated but supported by the Church"

"I couldn´t explain it better. Rhea had the opportunity to change this world for the better, but she did nothing and the Church has been abusing her position of power for centuries"

"A system that throws into the mud those guilty of bearing no crest" Dorothea said in a low voice, her hands trembling a little. "Thank you for telling us everything, Edie; now I have no doubts"

"Nobility has been supporting that system as well. The fact that you are the emperor, must mean that my father…"

"He is alive, Ferdinand. He might be a corrupt noble that abused his position and crushed many in the process, but you deserve to ask him everything you want to hear from him"

"Really? I thought…I thought that maybe…. Forgive me, Edelgard. I´ve known for years that my father opposes to everything I fight for, but I was too weak to confront him directly. I´ll take this opportunity to talk with him, you have my gratitude"

"And the other nobles?" Caspar asked while scratching his head.

"Those who sided with lady Edelgard have retained their positions, those that were against her, have lost their privileges among them the powerful Count Varley"

"That means that I can´t hide at home, I don´t want to see that man again, he is too scary!"

"In that case, fight for us, you are a quite talented archer and Lady Edelgard will need every possible help"

"Hubie, are you really complimenting someone apart from Edelgard? It seems that we live in difficult times" Dorothea giggled.

"That means that my father will be leading the main forces of the Empire, right? I´m glad I´ve followed you, guys. My father is really scary when he is angry"

"Caspar, now it isn´t the time to doubt. If you doubt, you will die" Petra said before looking at Edelgard. "I´ll fight for you, Edelgard, for a friend and for a better future for Brigid"

"Your words give me the strength that I need" she smiled. She was glad to have them by her side. "The path that lies before us won´t be easy, but if we help each other we´ll change this land for the better. We´ll be making history. Now step forward those willing to follow this path with me, I won´t scorn anyone that isn´t willing to do so, though"

"What are you talking about, Edie? I´m with you, besides if the Professor is here, there is nothing to fear"

"Opposing you would be too annoying. I prefer to spend my forces studying the mysteries of this land that arguing with you, I´m in" Linhardt yawned.

"I´ll fight for you, but please don´t put me in the front lines!"

"I know that my father failed you, but I won´t do the same. It is my duty as the successor of the Prime Minister"

"Brigid and the Empire we´ll fight together, as equals"

"I can´t say no to fighting with friends, I´ll give my best"

"Thank you, it really means much to me that you are on my side. I have a proposal to make, regarding the name of our group. How about naming us the Black Eagles Strike Force?" she said as she looked at Byleth.

"I think it is a good name" he said as he started to pat her head, making her blush. "I thought about it for a long time. I´m glad to hear that it is a suitable name"

"There are things that never change, I guess" Dorothea giggled.

"Be prepared, we´ll be leaving this place shortly" she said as they nodded to her before leaving. "I thought that even if I was meant to be alone, I would continue my path, but that doesn´t mean that I want to be isolated from them"

"Whatever it happens I´ll be there for you" Byleth said as he gently placed his hand on her shoulder, making her feel happy and embarrassed at the same time since Hubert was still in front of them.

"Professor, you have my deepest gratitude, but don´t abuse my trust. Lady Edelgard the manifest is ready to be sent"

"A manifest?"

"Yes, I plan to send it to all the noble houses of Fódlan, from the greatest to the smallest one. Some of them will be sent as well to cities and villages to spread the truth about the Church. The declaration of war has already been sent. Hubert, I entrust you with sending the manifests"

"It will be done, my emperor" Hubert said while bowing.

"Now there is no turning back, under my command an immense army will be moving to face the almighty Church. Many lives will be lost. Each one of them a burden I will have to carry for the rest of my life"

"Yet this is the path you seek"

"Yes, although that doesn´t mean it will be easy. To be honest, I feel like I´m dreaming, is it really ok to you to share this burden with me?"

"It´s not a dream, and I promise you I won´t leave you alone" he said as he took her hand. "No matter what happens we´ll go through this together"

"Without you, I´m sure that my heart would have turned into pure ice, a heartless emperor that would stop before nothing, but you have kept my heart warm" she said as she buried her face in his chest.

"I won´t let any of you die, but I´ll everything I can to save the rest of the students as well"

"You really care about all of us to the bitter end, that´s what I really like about you" she smiled. "Many won´t understand, some will even try to kill you, even in that case are you willing to save them?"

"I do"

"I hope that your words can avoid unnecessary bloodshed. I won´t remove a tyrant to turn into the next one. I won´t be the ruthless ruler that some will accuse me to be"

"I believe in your words. For now, let´s get ready to leave this place"

"Yes, it is about time"

….

"Dear students, this monastery has received a war declaration from the Adrestian Empire. The current Emperor is willing to destroy everything that is sacred in the search of becoming the new Goddess of this land. However, the Church will not tolerate such blasphemy. Our cause is pure and we will prevail over these apostates!

In times like this it is clear that it is the wish of the Goddess that we help each other to protect this world against such threat. All of you, from the humblest one to the heirs of your respective nations have a role to assumed in this upcoming battle. Your places of origin might be different but I beg you; forget your petty differences and protect the peace of this land. It is clear that the flames of war will only cause unnecessary suffering. It is our responsibility to keep this world at peace"

"War" he thought as he looked around. It was a word he wished he didn´t have to use anymore but there it was again.

….

"The forces of the Empire will be here in a few days. Even with the promised reinforcements from the Holy Kingdom, our possibilities of victory are slim" He said as he extended a map of Fódlan in front of Rhea. After the speech in front of all the students they had been there discussing plans against the upcoming invasion.

"I won´t let this place to fall under her claws. I´ll put and end to that treacherous wench. Losing the monastery could change the minds of those faint of heart. We need to keep it at all costs. This place won´t fall, I´ll use everything we have to defend it"

"The deployment of our ancient powers would certainly balance the outcome, but that would mean the obliteration of this region. Hundreds will die"

"Probably thousands. Even if the cost is a world of ashes, I won´t back down. It is our responsibility to keep this world under control until the return of Sothis"

"The wielder of Sothis´s will is on the other side of the battlefield"

"Taking pity of him proved to be my greatest mistake, a mistake that I am willing to solve now. He is just a thief that is using what remains of our mother for his evil deeds"

"Father, is it true that the Professor is evil?" asked a worried Flayn. He was about to respond, but he was interrupted by Rhea.

"How else could it be? He is a traitor, a usurper of the true ruler of this world" Rhea said, her voice a whip. "Humans are truly a disappointment. They are uncapable of ruling themselves and even though the heavenly rule that was established upon them granted them so many benefits they still decide to side against us!"

"But why would Edelgard choose to attack the Church?"

"She intends to change the foundations of this world and she knows that the Church is the column where this world rests. Without the Church the world would be completely different to the one we know, but how do we know that that change would be for the better? She is forcing her views upon people unwillingly to accept the change she offers to them"

"She is just a tyrant. She wants to usurp my power! She has seduced that gullible man and because of it the Sword of the Creator has fallen upon the claws of the evil. We´ll need to crush the Empire after this, they must know that there is a price to pay for this sacrilege"

"Rhea…. I understand your rage…but…"

"They have chosen their own deaths! I won´t show any mercy to them. The pain I feel…his betrayal…I won´t allow true dark to take control of this world!"

"Apologies for my comments" he said with a light bow.

"Seteth, bring to me Catherine. I´ll entrust her with the vanguard of our troops"

"Understood" he said as he prepared to leave. "Flayn, follow me"

They continued walking in silent, soldiers patrolling the once peaceful corridors.

"So, war is coming once again to us…When I thought this would be a place, I could call home"

"It really is a tragedy, but if the monastery falls, there will be nowhere to go" He had thought about it and he had finally decided to stay. Rhea was their only hope to avoid any persecutions, they didn´t have any other place to run away.

"Tell me, Flayn, what happened there?"

"The Professor sat on the throne of Sothis when suddenly imperial soldiers started to appear from the entrance. The Professor fought alongside us until her forces were defeated"

"And then, what happened?"

"Rhea ordered him to kill Edelgard"

"I see, I understand her anger, but I´m afraid that that decision was the catalyst of our current situation" He knew that Rhea used to take so drastic measures in order to neutralize every potential threat, but she should have thought about their bonds. Killing someone you know really well wasn't an easy decision and it was a responsibility that most men wouldn´t assume without a proper reason.

"The Professor was in the wrong, but I can´t say that I can´t understand his way of reasoning. However, the only thing that we can do now is to prepare for battle. Prepare to face your former classmates, Flayn. It is highly probable that they will be on the other side of the battlefield"

"Yes, father…Even if it breaks my heart, I will obey you…"

…..

"Well, the situation is worse than expected" Claude said in front of them. During the attack she had used her powers to bring Claude into safety, although she was also relieved to hear that the Professor and the rest were able to escape alive.

"War has come to us, ready for it or not" Leonie said as she checked her bow.

"It looks like that. There are many things that aren´t sure yet, but it seems that the conflict is already inevitable"

"In that case, which side will we pick?" Lorenz asked with an analytical look.

"What do you mean by that? It´s clear that we have to stay and defend the monastery. This is the place of many dear memories, I don´t want this place to fade into the flames of war!" Ignatz shouted in an unusual tone.

"Calm down, Ignatz. At times like this it is necessary to keep calm" Claude said as he extended a map of Fódlan. "If the Imperial Army wants to attack the Church, the quickest path would be the bridge of Myrddin. It is wide and strong enough to let most forces cross to the other side without any problems. They could also use ships, but that would slow them down by a lot"

"Even if we can use the bridge as a bottleneck, that would mean entering in this war, with the consequent rampage and casualties. We don´t have enough troops to face them in a total war" she said. The lands of Ordelia were also close to the borders of the Empire and she knew that an open war would lead to a catastrophe.

"I know, doing something like that would just offer the Alliance in a golden plate to the Empire"

"But Claude, if we do nothing, wouldn't the church be mad at us?" Hilda interrupted him, joining the conversation.

"The Church isn´t in a situation to make more enemies, but I don´t think that they would ever forgive us if we leave this place without helping them"

"So, you are willing to fight, even after you witnessed what happened at the throne room? We could have been killed by her fury!" Even though she felt betrayed the moment that Edelgard revealed her true Alliances, she was even more shocked with the true identity of Rhea. "Furthermore, do you think that the Professor would side with Edelgard without a proper reason?"

"Lysithea is right, Claude. I´m not the most intelligent guy here, but the Professor is a good man. I don´t think that he would side with her without a reason. As long as my sister remains safe I´m ok with whatever we do"

"There are also these papers" Lysithea said as she showed it to them. "It seems that they have been sent all around Fódlan"

"The Church of Seiros is the responsible of the stagnation of this land. They have divided all of us creating a system that only cares about the existence of Crests. They have banned any progress and they have executed those that have opposed their ideals and its leader had deceived the inhabitants of Fódlan for too long. In which world would the Goddess feel menaced by the creation of a more just society?

This war isn´t about the domination of Fódlan, but about breaking free from the chains of this tyranny. I offer a hand to everyone willing to bring change to this land. Lord or common folk, it doesn´t matter. If we cooperate, we can reach new heights. A better Fódlan is at the reach of our hands, we deserve better than this"

"Beautiful words, but many nobles would be afraid to change. I get what she is trying to do, but she is willing to do it too fast" Claude started to say as if he was talking to himself.

"A change of era would certainly bring some resistance with it. Good rulers aren´t the ones that won one battle, but the ones that win the war. The future of Fódlan won´t be decided by this simple battle. I´m sure that Dimitri and the kingdom will fight for the Church. The Alliance won´t oppose their advance through our lands, but we´ll stay here. I need to know to what extent is Edelgard willing to continue her path"

"That girl always had an intense aura around her. Perhaps that´s the Professor´s preference" Hilda sighed. "Even in that case, that doesn´t mean that we have to fight the Professor, right?"

"I don´t want to fight him and I don´t think he is willing to fight against us. There is no rational explanation about it, but it´s the way I´m feeling about it" she said as she looked around.

"Merciful Goddess, please protect us. A woman capable of following her path even if that means opposing the entire world…she is a fire that will make tremble the foundations of this world" Marianne said as she silently started to pray.

"I´ll need to ask him directly about what has happened, only then I'll choose what I´ll do" Leonie said as she stood up and prepared to leave the room.

"Me too, I have many unanswered questions, although I´m afraid that she won´t be have too much time to spare"

…

"So, she is finally coming. She seems to be willing to commit more atrocities. It is the time for retribution, retribution for those who died because of her, for the blood spilled in this land" Dimitri said as he looked through one of the windows. The sky was slightly cloudy, the army still far away, yet everyone was acting as if the battlefield was just in front of them.

"Are you blind, or your hatred against her makes you ignore the fact that Rhea turned into a monster?" He was exasperated by Dimitri´s attitude these last days, although he wasn´t surprised, it wasn´t the first time he had seen that face of his.

"That´s none of your business. Right now, imperial soldiers are approaching this place to finish what they started. If this place falls, they will continue towards the kingdom. I need to return to the kingdom to claim the throne to join forces with the church but I won´t run away from this battle. For now, we can only count with the troops that Rodrigue can send to us. I´ve already sent a letter to him, I hope it doesn´t bother you"

"You already did it, I couldn´t care less about it"

"But Dimitri, the manifest says…"

"Do you really believe the words of a liar, Sylvain? How can we trust these words?" Dimitri said as he teared apart the paper that Sylvain was holding. "She is a murderer and I won´t stop until I have her head on a pike. She is a menace to all the free nations of Fódlan. If we open our doors to the imperial army our citizens will be slaughtered and I won´t allow something like that to happen again!"

"In that case, we might have to face the Professor in the battlefield? Are you really ok with it? I´ll obey your command, but I can´t avoid feeling uneasy about it" Ingrid said with a worried look on her face.

"I have no will ill against the Professor. He might be acting against his own will. Edelgard is the only objective we must to focus on, but if we have to battle against him…don´t hesitate…He would be disappointed in all of us if we succumb to our feelings in the middle of the battlefield"

"Your majesty…I´ll follow your command, even if it means the dead of a friend"

"Dimitri, do you think that the Death Knight will be among the Imperial forces?" Mercedes asked with a worried expression.

"He might be. He was one of her lackeys after all"

"We´ve been training for a time like this all our lives yet when the time to battle comes I have fear. I don´t want to take part into this battle. I just wanted to reunite with my father" Annette said while sobbing.

"Tsk, your father has been avoiding you up to this day. His way of acting and ideas remind me somehow of my own father" He knew that Gilbert had abandoned everything, including his family after the events of the tragedy of Duscur, all of it to preserve his honor. "The honor of a knight is as worthless as the knights themselves"

"Felix, don't start with it again!"

"Fighting for the Church, how ironic" Ashe murmured, sitting on one of the corners, more talking to himself than to the rest of them.

"Be prepared for everything" Dimitri said before leaving the room accompanied by Dedue.

"Tsk, not only a boar, but a blind one" he thought, a soar taste in his mouth.

…..

"So, in the end we didn´t even have a proper dinner. What a way to ruin the mood"

"Balthus, are you really still complaining about that? I´ve heard that Rhea transformed into a monster, a little girl told me so"

"Ah, Lysithea, that little girl is too serious to joke about something like that"

"In that case, why are we still here? The Church that I hate so much isn´t even ruled by a human!"

"Well, we had to make sure that everyone in the Abyss could find a safer place, but you are right, the time to choose a side is already upon us"

"I trust the Professor and I hate the Church; I don´t have any more reasons to position myself"

"My alliances are with the Empire, not only because of my origins there and my own ambitions, but because I truly believe that our Professor would never side with someone with evil intentions. The Edelgard I know wouldn´t cause a war, if she wasn´t truly convinced that it was worth it"

"Well, a war means that the problem of my debts will be completely solved, right? According to that paper, this war is just against the Church, so the Alliance shouldn´t be affected by it. I don´t really want to face my old friend on the battlefield, but we owe one to the Professor. Without him, we all would have been killed by Aelfric in that shady ritual"

"You are right, Balthus, and I don´t think that he is just another Aelfric. A friend is a friend and I trust his good judgement. However, there are many old and weak people still around. We´ll make sure that they stay safe until this battle ends"

"For sure, Yuri" Balthus laughed as he patted his back.

….

"The end of an era approaches, my fellow comrades. Soon enough, this unending twilight will come to an end and we´ll rise again as the true heirs of this world! Prepare for battle! Our enemy will be merciless and so we´ll be. This battle will decide the future of this world for the centuries to come!" he said to his troops with an amplified voice. "The beginning of the end, the fight that we´ll decide the fate of many; the redemption or destruction of the world" he thought as he reunited with his generals.

"War is here, earlier than expected, soon enough the flames of war will engulf this land"

"Don´t fear the battle, my friend. The end of the gods is in sight, those creatures that crowned themselves as the rulers of us humans"

"Master Thales, what will we do with the Fell star?"

"The fact that has decided to side with her still shocks me, but we have to take advantage of it. We´ll destroy him for sure, but right now our focus must be put on our ancient enemy. They will certainly use all their might and we´ll do the same. Agartha will unleash its hammer upon this land once again"

"Our heavy weaponry is ready to leave this place, and our infantry is ready as well. Will we be using the pillars of light?"

"That would be foolish. Even if we have to use most of our forces, this base must be kept as an unfindable garrison. Using our ultimate weapon would reveal our position to them. We´ll make use of them as well, but only after we are sure about our victory. However, we´ll unleash upon this land the legacy of our ancestors" he said as the room started to descend into the depths of earth. "The only surviving weapon of our first great war; the great colossus, the hammer of Agartha!" he said as the platform finally stopped, an unending Abyss around them.

"Tartarus, I praise Thee and shall hymn Thy power. Release thine ire and crush the usurpers!" As he said so, the land started to tremble, a giant hand appearing from the depths.

"I have faith in your leadership, I have faith in our victory" Myson said bowing before him, a mechanical arm where there was once flesh.

"We´ll get rid of the poison that has been torturing this land for ages, and we´ll recover our birthright; the ruling of this world. The time to remain in the shadows has come to an end. The twilight of the beasts is about to begin" he said as he took a look to their greatest weapons.

"This is a battle we cannot lose. The future will be ours. I´ll finish what I started, Seiros. Agartha will return to the surface and we´ll vanish your kind from this world for good. And you, vessel of the star of doom, I´ll make sure that your light disappears from this world as well"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ladislava and Randolph will appear next chapter, as well as Jeritza. Happy Halloween!


	69. Roar of dominion

**5/13 Lone moon**

"So, you were here. The only person capable of withstanding my attacks. The only person that could bring me true death" whispered a voice from the deeps of the tent.

"Jeritza, control your dark impulses. You made an oath"

"And I remember it" Jeritza said as he took his helm off. "I won´t fight against you until the enemies of the Emperor are completely and utterly defeated, until them don´t dare to die or I will chase you to hell itself if needed"

"I´m glad to see well" he ironically said as he took a closer look at him. Without the mask he was a young and handsome man, but his eyes were cold. "This one is already dead" he said to himself as he approached Edelgard. Next to her there were two warriors, a man and a woman.

"I didn´t have the opportunity to introduce you. She is Ladislava, she has been faithfully serving me for many years. She is the captain of my bodyguard and now a commander of the Imperial army.

"I´ve heard many good things about you, Professor. Loyalty is the most important thing to me and as long as you are loyal to the Emperor, I will be loyal to you" she said with a light bow.

"And this one is Randolph, a member of House Bergliez"

"I´m still young and inexperienced, but I will make sure to do everything I can to grant us victory"

"Does the name Caspar, from House Bergliez sound familiar to you?"

"Caspar, is he here? I haven´t been able to see him. Well, you could say that we are members of the same family, specifically his step-uncle, but this is not the time to discuss familiar matters, don´t you think?" he laughed.

"You should keep your composure, Randolph. You are a general of the Imperial Army now, not a child"

"Sorry, Ladislava" Randolph apologized with a quick bow.

"Now that everyone is here, it is time to discuss our plan to assault the monastery. Our main forces have enough numbers to initiate a siege against it, but that could cost many lives. However, if we are able to break through the Church forces and we swiftly defeat Rhea, we will be able to destroy the morale of the Church army before we suffer too many casualties. Rhea is the key for the victory of this battle. She is the king on the board"

"But she is a very well protected king" Hubert laughed. "Our spies have informed us that the terrains around the Monastery are already getting prepared for the assault. They are planning to make us fight outside as they use some battalions and the reinforcements from the Holy Kingdom as a bait while they make rain death upon us. They have prepared ballistae for the assault as well as magic orbs capable of hitting us at a considerable distance"

"If we fight against the forces that they are willing to sacrifice we will be under fire from the monastery, but if we ignore them, they will try to attack our rearguard, to make sure that we don´t have enough goods to initiate a siege. They will have probably closed every secondary access to the monastery by now, so our only path to Rhea will have to be by flying or by breaking through the main gates"

"An early aerial assault could be tempting, but they might be expecting it" he said as he pointed out to the towers. "These towers had all kind of magic devices capable of disabling magic, so even if we use our magic advantage, we could get surrounded by enemy troops very easily. How about the access by the Abyss?"

"Our scouts have been searching for them, but they have already blocked them. However, the forces of my uncle are ready to face the distraction force of the Church. They have enough power to weaken the defenses of the monastery, but they will be unable to trespass the inner walls"

"That would require a considerable amount of fire power, but if they can get rid of most towers, our path will be easier"

"We also have barrels with gunpowder to destroy some of the walls, but that option is highly unadvisable until we get rid of the watchtowers"

"Do you think that Rhea will come to face us at the front lines?" he asked as he took a closer look to the structure of the monastery. The walls were thick enough to withstand the explosions of the barrels and the monastery didn´t lack provisions to resist an initial assault, but if they could bring her to the frontlines…

"Highly doubtful. Even if she is seeking our deaths, it is highly unlikely that she sacrifices her defense advantage just for the sake of her personal revenge so we can´t act as a bait"

"I see, in that case we´ll have to do our best with everything we have. Our group will handle the main gates while we receive support to destroy the defensive positions. Once the auxiliary forces of the Church get destroyed, we´ll focus on the monastery exclusively. Any reports about the presence of civilians?"

"All reports are negative. It seems that they have used these weeks to run away, which it is a relief. This war will cost many lives, there is no need to turn this battle into a slaughter of the small folk"

"Any reports from the Alliance?"

"They have been silent since our entrance through the Great Bridge, but that could mean anything. They are probably discussing which side is the more suitable to their needs, but I doubt they will join the fight so soon. The Kingdom is another matter, though. They have chosen to support the Church, so now we´ll have to face both military forces on the battlefield. Luckily enough, they haven´t prepared most of their troops yet" she said before looking at Ladislava and Randolph. "Make sure that the troops are ready to march. We are already in enemy land; we have no time to waste. Hubert, accompany Jeritza to the main camp"

"Understood, emperor"

"Is Arundel already here?" For days they have been hearing of the troops of Lord Arundel, but they had been following their own path.

"According to this letter they will be joining us on the battlefield. It seems that he wants to give me something before the battle begins, a new weapon created by them. They seem to believe that they can keep me under control with their devices, but that would be their doom. However, for now we must just pretend otherwise" He was about to reply when the sound of footsteps before the tent made him look at the entrance.

"My favorite niece, long time no see you" Arundel was smiling, but his eyes were as cold as ice and they grew colder the moment that they stopped on him.

"No need to pretend what you are not here, Thales"

"I just wanted to be nice for once" he laughed before turning into the grotesque man he was. "I must say that I´m surprised to see you here, but a friend of Edelgard is a friend of mine"

"Another word like that and I will cut your head off"

"It would proof to be a useless show of violence, since I´ve taken the body of one of my subordinates to attend this meeting, but I´ll respect your will" he said as he shrugged.

"Why were you so eager to come here? I hope your troops are ready for battle"

"They won´t disappoint you, they have been training for this their whole life. I´ve come to give you a new weapon, a device that could mean the difference between victory and defeat" he said as a weapon started to appear on his hand. "A relic to bring down the beast, its name Aymr" The weapon in front of them was a battle axe, engulfed in a strong magic aura, a red orb that looked like an eye in the center of it.

"So, you really were able to craft a new relic"

"Where there is knowledge there is might, although a natural device would be more stable this weapon won´t betray you in battle. It also has more properties than the conventional relics. Activating the power of your twin crests you will be able to inherit the wrath of lightning, a light that will strike your enemies down" Thales said as he offered to her the weapon, the moment she touched it, it released brilliant sparks of ancient power from within.

"It can proof to be useful, but only with one weapon our victory cannot be guarantee"

"Don´t worry about it, we´ll fight for your cause as long as it benefits ours"

"What are your intentions? What do you seek?" he asked looking at him with hatred. He was tempted to kill him, but he knew that the true master was hiding elsewhere.

"I only seek to bring balance to this world. Humanity has lived in the shadows for thousands of years and all this time my only objective has been to recover what we lost. I know that both of you hate me, but think about it carefully. My death won´t resolve the upcoming war, the immaculate one will make sure that humanity suffers because of your defiance. As long as she has any power, she will make sure to use it against us. This is an alliance out of necessity. Agartha is willing to unify humanity under the banners of the Empire if that means that the rule of the ancient dragons come to an end" Thales said as he looked to the map in front of them. "The weapon I´ve gifted to the Flame Emperor has the only objective of piercing through her flesh, we´ve created it with the fire of our hatred and our knowledge"

"Like the rest of the hero's relics"

"Every relic had its own craftsman, but I had the honor of making the very same sword you are wielding. Sadly, up to this day its true power hasn´t truly awakened. Why do you continue to refuse your true nature?"

"What are you saying?"

"The Sword fuels your soul and your soul fuels the sword, you could say that it is a natural extension of your very own body, yet you are still incomplete"

"Your words are just poison, I won´t listen to your ill-advised words. I won´t abuse my powers for the sake of your own ambitions"

"How arrogant, but that is a part of your nature, star of doom" Thales laughed as he prepared to depart. "My troops will make sure that the main forces of the Church are defeated. However, we won´t be able to assault the monastery by our own, be prepared to face the battle of our time" he said as he disappeared from there.

…..

**5/15**

"The enemy is at sight! Catherine is already with the ground troops ready to attack, but she won´t last for long against such army"

"She will prevail, she has my favor. I told you Seteth that I won´t let this place fall. It is the will of our mother that we stay here and we defeat her enemies" Rhea said as she cherished the surface of an ancient chest of a colossal size, the moment her fingertips touched it, it started to shake violently.

"That´s ancient magic that could proof to be our undoing. With the aid of our golems we should be able to defend the monastery. They don´t have enough goods to prepare a siege, I…"

"They have their own assault troops as well. This is a war of annihilation. Among their troops you will find our ancient enemy. They are willing to destroy us, and I will make sure that that doesn´t happen. They have sworn undying loyalty to the Church, now in death it is time that they come to our aid" she said as she placed her hand on the ancient chest.

"Ancient lords, defenders of the faith. Now in death it is time that you come to the aid of the Goddess. You made an oath, defend us and destroy our enemies!" As the cover of the chest was opened a dark fog came from the depths of it, but he could see them, human faces that were flying to the battleground.

"I summon you, rain of the oblivion, drink my blood and make my enemies drown under my fury" she continued as she cut the palm of her hand, her blood falling on a dark orb. A dark red light came from within as the sun outside started to get covered in red clouds.

"Now the stage is ready for the battle that will decide the fate and lives of many"

"Merciful goddess" was the only thing that he could think of as he saw how was the state of the battlefield in front of them.

…..

"I don´t like these clouds a bit" he murmured as he readied his sword. The sky was covered in red clouds and heavy rain was starting to fall, but he could see the banners of the Church to the other side of the battlefield, although there appeared to be more banners than ever before. "Magic" he realized when he felt a strange feeling within his body.

"Emperor! Thousands of soldiers have suddenly appeared! They are in the skirt of the mountain as well!"

"Rhea is willing to crush us with all her strength, but her plan will end in a miserable failure. If we defeat Rhea the battle is over. Soldiers, have no fear! This day is the beginning of a new age for Fódlan! Ladislava, Randolph I leave both of you the command of our main forces, don´t take unnecessary risks unless obliged to do so. My group will make sure to weaken the defensive position of the monastery to avoid attacks from the two sides of the battlefield"

"Understood!"

"Black Eagles Strike Force. This is the time our bounds will be tested. Each of you has a battalion, made a good use of it as we approach the main gates!"

"Me, Petra and Edelgard will attack from the skies, we´ll make sure to open the doors from within. Until then don´t expose yourself to the watchtowers"

"This rain is making me sleepy, but I will do what I can" Linhardt said, although he looked completely awaked for once.

"Professor, Edie, Petra, stay safe" Dorothea said with a worried look on her face.

"Remember to stay together, and don´t try to be a hero" he said as he looked at Caspar.

"Don´t worry, Professor, I´ll keep an eye on all of them. Is the least I can do for all of you" Ferdinand said as he adjusted his lance.

"And I will make sure to keep an eye on him as well" Hubert chuckled. "The Emperor´s life is on your hands, make sure to protect her accordingly, unless you wish to unleash my fury"

"Don´t worry, Hubert, we´ll get through this" he said as he flew higher and higher with his mount, accompanied by Edelgard and Petra.

…..

"The forces of our enemy have multiplied"

"I wouldn´t expect less from her, and this weather is something I remember too well, the red clouds that preceded the deaths of many. She is willing to crush us, but this day won´t be the one that we die. Today is the beginning of the return of Agartha. Proud soldiers, don´t shame our motherland and destroy the usurpers! Prepare the artillery, and our flying machinery, keep the Titanus at the front lines, they will absorb most of the attacks while we advance. Our objective is to shatter the vanguard of our enemy. If we are able to do so, the monastery will remain isolated and will be an easy prey"

"How about the archbishop, do you think that they will be able to kill her?" Myson asked as he adjusted his own weapon.

"Highly doubtful. If she survives, we´ll make sure to take our just repayment from her flesh. Now advance, brothers, this is the day that our fate changes for good. The endless cycle of tyranny has to come to an end!" he shouted as his troops started to advance. They had the technology advantage on their side, but he knew that they were facing supernatural forces. A step in false could get all of them killed.

"What about the Colossus? Our forces are mighty, but its presence could be decisive"

"It´s time will come shortly, but first I want to evaluate every possible risk. A player doesn´t reveal all his cards with one movement unless he is certain of a total victory. Let her show her strengths and weaknesses and we will respond accordingly" he said as he looked at the troops of the Church approaching. "I´ve waited a long time for this. I will have the victory today; your race must end to guarantee a brighter future to this land"

….

Arrows and spells were trying to shoot them down as they attacked from the heights.

"Petra, on your left!" he shouted as he released the power of his sword to shot down a knight from the Church.

Petra thanked him with a quick nod, before entering in battle again. The rain was heavier than before and the visibility was poor, but the number of spells aimed to them allowed him to have a greater vision of the battle beneath him. The land troops were slowly approaching the main gates, heavy shields giving coverture to the soldiers behind them. Explosions on the esplanade made him took a quick glance of the battle taking part in it, giant machines trying to take down the countless spectral soldiers coming to the aid of the Church.

"Byleth!" Edelgard´s voice made him come back to his senses as he avoided an arrow aimed to his head. Looking at the direction of the arrow, he could see a familiar face.

"Shamir, that was a good shot" he said as he avoided another arrow aimed at him.

"I don´t know what´s going on between you and Rhea, but I don´t think now is the time for idle chatting" she said as she prepared another arrow.

"You are right" he said as he violently descended upon her. She shot again, but he destroyed the arrow with a fire spell before jumping on her. With a quick movement of his left hand he was able to stop the knife that was aimed to his stomach.

"Jeralt taught you well" Shamir laughed as she tried to break free, church troops were trying to approach her when they were stroke down by one of Aymr´s potent attacks.

"Are you going to claim the victor´s price?" Shamir simply asked as she looked at him directly into the eye, there wasn´t fear in them, only curiosity.

"I can´t kill a friend just for doing their job" he said as he helped her to stand up. "Leave this place if you want, I won´t be chasing you"

"You shouldn´t let the emotions get in the way" Shamir laughed but she didn´t try to attack him again. He was about to reply when an explosion shattered the ground around them. He was able to avoid the attack, but when he looked again at where Shamir was, she had already disappeared.

"I hope she survived"

He was returning again to the skies when the main gates of the monastery were destroyed by an attack from Edelgard´s relic. The first soldiers of their force entering the monastery.

"The low level is already ours" Edelgard said as she approached him on her own mount. "However, the battle will get harder from now on"

"I know" he said as they approached the second level of the monastery.

…

"Don´t give up or I will make sure that death is the least of your concerns!" he roared as he slayed another of the followers of the beast. Their machine gun was making short work of the human soldiers, but the spirits were another matter. "You cowards, come face me directly!" he said as he showed to them his weapon, a giant mace made out of one of the slayed beasts of ancient times. The smell of battle was driving him crazy; it has been a long time since he felt so alive.

Spirits of the ancient soldiers of the Church jumped on them, but a hit of his giant mace was enough to make them disappear. Suddenly, the land started to tremble, the golems of the Church starting to appear on the battlefield.

"Titanus, yours is the glory. Show the golems who the true ruler of this world is! Artillery support in front of me!"

"There are soldiers of the empire there"

"Fire at will!"

"Roger that"

And then living hell exploded a couple of meters in front of him. Humans and beasts were flying on the skies as leaves in the winds of autumn by the potent explosions released by their 200 mm cannons. When the explosions ended a wasteland of scattered limbs and arms was what was left of the once living combatants.

A flip of wings in the sky alerted him from an incoming attack. He blocked the attack from one of the Pegasus Knight aimed at his heart and sent the beast and the rider to the ground. The beast was about to get up again, but he crushed its skull with his hammer, making it collapse on its rider.

"Stop, stop. I surrender, mercy" cried his attacker. He could see that she was a young girl, red hair with blue eyes.

"How old are you?"

"Sixteen, please, mercy. I surrender" she replied, tears leaving her eyes.

"There is no need to cry" he said with a sweet voice as he approached. "I accept your surrender" he whispered before crushing her face with his iron boots, what was left once of the living young girl was a bloody pulpy mass.

"The thrill of the hunt" he thought as he continued releasing death along his soldiers.

…

"We´re all tired of waiting" Dimitri said as he approached them through the ruins of the second level. "Now is the time that you´ll pay for everything you have done. Professor, I wish you could be on our side, but it seems that that possibility is gone"

"Your ire is misguided, I´m not the one responsible of Duscur, Dimitri"

"Dimitri, I don´t want to be your enemy"

"Yet you are allied with the woman that has brought so much pain and destruction to the lives of many. The only thing I can grant you is a quick death" he said as he approached them like a tempest, but he wasn´t the only one, as he stopped an attack aimed to his head from behind.

"I thought you could understand his highness. I apologize for any suffering I can cause to you" Dedue said as he continued to attack him with a heavy axe. Looking for an opening he tried to disarm him but he was stopped by another axe.

"You are a traitor, I won´t let you take his majesty´s life! I won´t fail again as a knight!" It was Gilbert, his eyes cold as he tried to overwhelm him with sheer strength. He couldn´t see any of the other Blue lion´s students, although he sensed they were nearby.

"You made an oath to the archbishop, yet you have broken it and now you are joining the forces of the nation trying to take control of the whole world!"

"You are mistaken" he replied as he parried another attack, before quickly counterattacking to avoid Dedue´s hit. "Edelgard wasn´t behind the tragedy of Duscur, Dedue, she was a kid back then, you must know that she couldn´t have done something like that"

"A weapon doesn´t need to have a will of its own. If his Highness thinks that she is the responsible, I´ll believe his words" he simply replied as he unleashed a brutal hit that shattered a wall next to him. He was trying to control his powers since he was trying to avoid any unnecessary bloodshed, but they needed to get into the cathedral as soon as possible if they wanted to end the battle quickly.

…..

"Of all people I didn´t expect you to the be the mastermind behind everything that has happened. Were you just pretending someone you weren´t the whole time? Gaining our confidence and making us trust you while your true alliances lied elsewhere"

"I won´t deny that I had my mind on my plans, but that doesn´t mean that I was pretending the whole time, Dimitri" she said as she stopped another attack from his lance. "Your anger and seek for vengeance are misguided. It´s not me the responsible of the tragedy of Duscur, but Lord Arundel"

"I already suspected from him, but that doesn´t make you innocent. You should have trusted me if you knew who was the responsible of such slaughter"

"Without knowing for certain that you will listen to my words? I don´t think so. You would have made your own conclusions based on what you want to believe not what the reality is"

"Every time you open your filthy mouth, my ire grows stronger!" Dimitri shouted as he two-handed his lance with a potent blow against her. Luckily enough her reflexes were quick as she stopped with her new relic the attack, the lance shattering due to the impact.

"You should control your emotions. The path of vengeance just for the sake for it will cause unnecessary suffering to those that worry about your wellbeing"

"You are just a monster" he shouted as he tried to hit her with his fists, but he was hit with a thunder strike of her relic, making him lose consciousness.

"I wish I was the monster all of you think I am. It would be easier if I don´t have any regrets about the path I seek"

….

"His Highness!" Dedue shouted as he lost focus. Taking advantage of the situation, he used a magic explosion at point blank range that sent both of his opponents flying.

"We only need to approach the bridge and then we can face the archbishop"

He was about to approach her, when a silver light made him turn around. Stopping the throwing axe throwed at him, he could see that Gilbert was standing up again, even though he had an injury on his head.

"Don´t disturb him. He is mine" interrupted them a metallic voice, as a scythe blocked another axe aimed at him. "This one is mine, hurry up, you two" Jeritza said as he started fighting against one of his former companions.

"Thank you" he simply said as he ran with Edelgard to their following destination.

….

Smoke was everywhere, the sound of fighting beneath him, as he leaded his war battalions against the enemy hordes. Birds of steel were trying to annihilate them, but they were agile enough to avoid their fury as they got rid of their wings of steel. Below, Catherine forces were facing monsters and giant creatures made of metal. If it weren´t for the presence of the spirits they would have been annihilated by now, but he knew that they needed to neutralize the firing positions of their enemy.

"We have to get rid of their artillery! Come with me!" he shouted as he guided his troops into an attack to the enemy rearguard. The battlefield was clearly divided between their forces, the forces of the Empire and the Agarthans, which were the ones that were attacking several positions with their weapons. As he grew closer, he could see that they had all kind of steel beasts releasing death upon the battlefield.

"Prepare the magic shields!" he said as he casted a magic barrier as they were welcome by a rain of tiny arrows that the Agarthans used to call "bullets".

He cut through steel and flesh as he started to get rid of the enemy artillery, but the flying monsters were already on them. They were about to clash with them, but they were engulfed in the magic explosions released by the golems sent to the battlefield by Rhea.

"You are a fool if you truly think that victory will be decided just by the destruction of some of our ranged weapons. We have plenty of weapons to spare and you will not survive this day" A pale man mounted on one of the enemy giants said.

"No matter what you tried to do, the outcome was decided thousands of years ago. This is just the epilogue to your race"

"Even now you don´t seem to understand. The end of the Gods is at sight. Only a fool thinks that has won when the battle hasn´t been decided yet. I will show you how wrong you are" the pale man said as he placed his hand on the ground, the moment he did, the land trembled violently as a pair of giant hands emerged from the pits of earth.

"Destroy it!" he shouted as he concentrated all his power into his lance. The creature in front of them was of a monstrous side, a gold cover making it look even more magnificent. He and his troops hit the giant multiple times in different spots, but it seemed to feel nothing. The giant, lazily started to move its arms, its hands crushing those unlucky enough to be on its way.

He was trying to fly higher when he was trapped between his hands. Its mount tried to free himself, but no matter what he tried to do, they couldn´t run away from its grip.

"You might have won many battles until now, but now you will understand that the war will be ours. I know that you have a daughter, a daughter that has granted us her precious blood"

"Don´t…come after Flayn. If you want someone just pick me, but leave her"

"Who would be satisfied by the leftovers when you can get the first prize. However, I think that it would be rude to keep father and daughter alone in the middle of the battle. Tartarus, return our guest back to the monastery"

The giant moved as he threw them at the monastery, the only thing he could think of was his daughter.

….

"Hey Teach, long time no see you. Why the hell are you taking part on this battle?" Claude said as he aimed at him with his bow. He was accompanied by Lysithea and Leonie as well as Flayn, which were blocking their path to the cathedral.

"This battle isn´t between you and us, Claude. It is about the Church"

"The very same Church that you swore to protect, why Professor? Why are you fighting against us?"

"Professor, she is the Flame Emperor, the very same that was in the village of Remire, don´t you think that she is responsible of your father´s dead?" Leonie asked as she prepared her bow.

"Those who slither in the dark are the ones that are responsible of those dreadful events. Do you really think I would be at this place if it wasn´t for a good reason? I know how much you admired my father and I can tell you, that his sacrifice wasn´t in vain. I´ll take my revenge and I´ll make sure that no more sacrifices take place just for the sake of the ancient powers" he said before looking at Flayn. "Rhea experimented on my body, she inserted Sothis´s essence within me to make a vessel for her resurrection. I was nothing to her, but a puppet that she could use at the most convenient time"

"Wait, what? Sothis is within you?" Claude asked surprised.

"Lysithea, you and I aren´t that different. The crests we wield are the result of the experimentations we suffered in our bodies. I know what happened in house Ordelia, a few years ago. The existence of crests is the responsible of the suffering we had to endure both of us. Tell me, that isn´t your natural hair color, right? My hair color used to be different as well, yet it changed"

"My family suffered because of those events, but the perpetrators came from the Empire"

"They came from the Empire, but they aren´t the Empire. They have been trying to take control of this land, but I won´t allow them to achieve their objectives. This is not a war of domination; it is a war for survival"

Lysithea was showing doubt in her eyes, when something impacted against the bridge, a part of it collapsing due to the impact. A couple of projectiles exploded on the base of the giant bridge menacing to make them fall to the Abyss. He could see that Claude and Leonie were climbing through the debris to get away of the danger, but Lysithea was in a far more dangerous situation. Without thinking it twice he jumped on the crumbling bridge. Using the sword of the creator as a liana he propelled himself towards Lysithea´s position.

"Take my hand!" he shouted as bricks continued to fall into the abyss between the monastery and the cathedral. She strongly grabbed his hand and embraced him from behind to avoid falling to her death as he slowly started climbing to the side where the rest of them were.

"Are you ok?" he asked as he slowly placed Lysithea on the ground.

"I thought I would die there, even if my time is limited…I want to live" Lysithea answered, her body slightly trembling.

"Claude, all of you are free to leave this place, we aren´t seeking your deaths, even if you don´t agree with what I´m chasing I hope that you can at least understand that"

"Edelgard, is right. We have to leave this place before the situation gets worse" Lysithea said as she regained her composure.

"The rest of the guys must still be around here. We´ll have to search for them. Don't die here yet, ok. Our conversation must continue some other day" Claude said as he prepared to leave. He was quickly followed by Lysithea and Leonie. While Lysithea was thanking him for saving her life, he noticed how Leonie observed him in silent, until she did a quick nod before leaving.

"We need to keep going, Rhea is already waiting for us" Edelgard said as their mounts came to their help.

"Father, please father"

To the other side of the ruins of the bridge he could see what remained of Seteth´s mount and Seteth himself embraced by her daughter. He was greatly injured his limbs in unnatural positions.

"Flayn, I just need some time to rest, that´s all. I…ugh!"

"Father! I won´t let you finish him off, please have mercy on him!"

"Killing you isn´t my intention. And killing someone in a state like this has no honor. Leave this place, while you can. If you stay, I´m not responsible of what could happen to you" he said as he looked at father and daughter.

"Byleth…all I can say to you is that your cause is doomed. Rhea´s powers will literally crush you if you dare to enter the cathedral. She won´t back down. It would be wiser to leave this place and leave instead of staying and die" Seteth said breathing with difficulty as he stood up with the help of Flayn.

"Whatever it happens it would be a consequence of my actions. If that results in my death, I will accept it, but that doesn´t mean that I will surrender to my destiny" he said as Flayn and Seteth disappeared from there.

"You let them go"

"What would have you done?"

"A logical response would be to kill them since they are allies of our enemy, but I can´t disagree with your decision. Showing mercy at appropriate times is the key to keep things in order, merciless killing would only bring more suffering and hatred and this world already has plenty of it. I have the feeling that we will meet them one more time, but what will happen then I can´t even dare to say" she said as she took a look to her axe. "Now the time to check if this weapon is enough to bring this battle to an end approach"

"Let´s end this…together" he said as he offered his hand to her.

"Yes…together…"

…..

"At last, you have come to this place" Rhea said as she observed how Byleth and Edelgard got rid of the last soldiers defending the entrance. "How much are you willing to destroy, how much are you willing to sacrifice for the sake of your own ambitions?"

"Your time has ended, Rhea! Your rule has brought nothing but suffering to this land"

"Suffering? Are you sure that you truly mean these words, child? This land has suffered indeed, but because of your hand. In the process of destroying each other, you humans brought unending suffering to this land. All living creatures were suffering because of your actions, that´s why we marched to war"

"Are you referring to the war of liberation?"

"No, a war far beyond that little quarrel. It was the war that shaped the continents and the oceans, as well as all living beings. You humans started to kill each other and your actions were menacing to bring the end of times to this world, the suffering of countless life forms ignored by the drums of war. The pain of all life was so great that our mother decided to march in war against your kind, the elements were on our side as well as all kind of living forms, yet humanity reunited to fight against us.

They used all kind of weapons to destroy us. Millions of you died while thousands of my kind were destroyed in the process of bringing a new era of true peace. When the war ended the lands were a wasteland and the seas were poisonous pits. Realizing the consequences of the great war and how hopeless was the situation for the survivors of the tragedy, my mother sacrificed herself in order to heal the injuries of this world and we inherited her position as the protectors of this world. Most humans were annihilated during the war, yet some of them survived and surrendered to us.

Our mom´s wish was to create bonds between our species to protect the peace that was created…but humans are ignorant beings that are willing to forget the sacred sacrifice of the merciful Sothis. Time and a time again they have risen in arms to spill the blood of my kin and now a thief of what remains of Sothis and a traitor of her ancestors have come here to finish what started thousands of years ago…but all of you are just a bunch of fools. I won´t fall by your hand. I´ll destroy both of you and make sure that Sothis, the mother of the Gods returns to this land!"

"I´m not a traitor, I´ve never served you!"

"Your blood is proof enough of your betrayal. Yes…I gave my blood to the first emperor to grant him part of my power in exchange of his undying loyalty. Opposing me is opposing your ancestors, oath breaker. I´m the creator of your dynasty, you should bow before me and ask for mercy instead of opposing me! Everything you are, everything you will ever be starts and ends with me"

"Having the crest of Seiros is not of my deciding and the decisions of our ancestors don´t have to mark our very own fate. No son should be guilty of the crimes of his father and I won´t obey your command. The fate of mankind should be chosen by the people not the gods"

"Gods exist so you, mortals can have a tolerable existence. We are the guardians of the balance of this world. Without gods this world would fall to madness once again since the future of the world cannot be trusted upon you, that is the treacherous nature of your kind. Fighting a god is a crime against nature itself!"

"No God should be over the law, if your will is to create a world that reflects such ideals you should be the first to apply them on yourself. You are just a hypocrite that is willing to cover the world in lies if that suits your own vision of the world. What have you done to resolve the problems of the current Fódlan? You have done nothing; in fact, your indulgence is the cause of the many troubles that this land is suffering. The time has come for you to step aside"

"Every word you speak is a proof of your blasphemy. I´m getting tired of this conversation, but before I end your pathetic life, let me tell you something. The crest of Flames you are wielding is just a lie; a flickering flame trying to compete against the sun. You mortals are trying to overcome my mother, but you are the living proof of your failure. You won´t life for too long, that´s the price of going against nature, monster"

"You are acting like you are self-righteous, yet you have used me as a mere thing, as a catalyst to summon Sothis back to this world" he said as he prepared for battle. "The Sothis I know would be disappointed in you"

"Enough of your insolence! Do you really think that you know our creator? The Sothis you might know is a mere fragment of her true self. Now the time of retribution begins" Rhea said as she unsheathed her own weapon, an icy mist coming out of it.

In the blink of an eye she was already on them. Her sword aiming to his heart, but he was able to stop it as Edelgard tried to hit her with her powered up axe, but she quickly avoided the incoming attack.

"Your vision is limited if you really think you will be able to defeat me!" Rhea shouted as she casted a spell, a blizzard of death coming at them. Casting a fire barrier, ice and fire met in a mortal embrace, the world around them surrounded by an impenetrable mist.

"This is a fight you cannot possibly win" Rhea´s voice said from the depths of the mist to his right when a sword attack came from his left, luckily enough Edelgard was able to stop the attack with her axe.

"Stop doing your little tricks and fight us with everything you got!" he shouted as he casted a potent fire spell to cast aside the mist, the moment the mist disappeared she was already in front of him.

"I will put an end to your pathetic existence" Rhea said as she grabbed him from the arms and launched him against one of the columns of the cathedral, debris falling on him. He was coughing still trying to get up again when Rhea came to him with her sword ready to pierce his heard, but he deflected the attack with a quick move of his sword, their dance of life and death surrounded by blue and red flames.

"The sword you have is what remains of my mother and yet you dare to use it against me! Your allies are the ones that brought destruction to this land, don´t you understand!"

"They are on the wrong but so you are! Tell me, have you ever thought about me as something else than a tool to bring Sothis back to this world?"

"If it weren´t by me you would be death, you petulant child!"

"I´m not a tool that can be used at your will, Rhea. You said that the Sothis I know is just a fragment of the true one, but tell me. What would she say if she knew you were willing to do such acts to bring her back?"

"A mortal can´t possibly understand the responsibilities of a God!" Rhea shouted as she tried to hit him with a brutal slash, but her focus was broken.

"A God can´t understand the way humans think!" Taking advantage of her mistake he tackled her with his body, his sword biting the flesh of her stomach. However, a potent explosion was released from her body and sent him to the ground.

"Fool!" Rhea shouted as she tried to attack him with his very own sword, but it was stopped by Edelgard´s axe.

"He is not the one that is going to die today" Edelgard said as she released the powers of the storms upon Rhea´s body, the impact sending her to one of the columns of the sacred building.

"Are you ok?"

"Don't worry, I won´t be dying now, it would too bothersome to do so at a time like this" he smiled, but he knew that the battle wasn´t over yet.

"Two against one, how brave of you to face me like that"

"If we stand up together there is nothing, we can´t overcome. Our bonds are far stronger than your ambitions for this land, Rhea"

"I should have noticed before the existence of such bonds. Because of them we are in this situation, you should have never been born, Sothis would have returned to this world to grant us the ultimate peace that we deserve" Rhea said as she suddenly was engulfed in an icy mist.

"You have fought well but that isn´t enough to compete against the Gods" Rhea said as she grabbed Edelgard from the neck.

"Release her, Rhea! The object of your fury is not her but me!"

"Your infatuation with this…this thing, this creation of our ancient enemy will prove to be your undoing" Edelgard was trying to break free, but even with the power of her twin crests Rhea´s hand didn´t move an inch, that was the power of her fury.

"There is no choice, I need to return back in time to avoid this outcome" he thought as he closed his eyes…but nothing happened.

"Do you really think that you could pull out a trick like that? I´m a descendant of the Goddess and my powers here neutralize yours!" Rhea cruelly laughed as she saw his intents to return back in time. "Here, surrounded by my family, a usurper has no chance! You should have known what were the consequences of facing me before committing your perfidious treason" She continued as she raised both arms; her hands ready to tear her in half.

Fury overwhelmed every inch of his body as he ran towards her and suddenly, he wasn´t running but on her, his fists brutally punching her head, while Edelgard was coughing, trying to recover her breath a few meters from him.

A magic explosion sent him flying a few meters away, but he felt no pain. In fact, he felt as if all the power of the earth was flowing through his very own veins.

"Instead of going to the past you have gone to the future…Interesting, you may have awakened a new power of our creator, but don´t let hope overwhelm you. Sothis might have granted you immortality and part of her powers, but that doesn´t mean that you have turned into a god, your flesh is the very same than the rest of mortals and not even the powers of Sothis will allow you to escape from the claws of hell"

"The only claws I need to escape from are yours, Rhea"

"Enough of your insolence, do you really think that you have seen all my power? Your existence ends here and now" Rhea said as she extended her hands. "Brothers and sisters…come to my aid and give me your strength to crush my enemies!" she said as spectral figures started to surround her, green orbs where their eyes were supposed to be. When the spirits disappeared, the only proof they had been there was the light coming from Rhea´s eye, an intense green eye that made looking at her painful.

"If you truly believe that the Goddess is on your side, she will grant you her unlimited power…If not prepare to die, traitor! The battle to bring an end to this madness arrives at last"

"And I accept your defiance!" he said as he prepared to face the battle of his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was difficult to write. Splitting it in 4 k was weird so I decided to pull out this together. Consider this the publication of last week plus this week. Hopefully, next week I will publish on Friday like normal. I haven´t forgotten about Cyril and Catherine (and Alois and company), don´t worry.
> 
> Prepare for phase 2.


	70. The celestial dragon

The floor of the cathedral was shattering as he avoided a powerful spell. Rhea´s body was releasing a powerful light from within; he could clearly see her green veins as she released her rage upon him.

"You can´t compare to my power, thief!" she shouted as her sword impacted against his own, blue and green sparks coming from their weapons with each blow. Edelgard was already on her, but she parried her attack with the shield of Seiros, a green aura coming from within the deepest part of the shield.

"You still dare to defy me!" An explosion happened, sending both of them flying. He could see how she was using her shield to push Edelgard against one of the walls. Even if she was using both of her crests, the fury in Rhea´s attack was truly unstoppable. The impact made crumble one of the walls of the cathedral as Rhea prepared herself to give the killing blow.

"Your bloodline ends here and now!"

"Not so fast!" he shouted as he used the whip form of his sword to trap Rhea´s arm, launching her against one of the columns of the building. The impact made the ceiling fell upon her, the cathedral menacing to crumble upon all of them. He was about to breath of relieve when he felt a strong power coming from within the ruins.

"I´m not done yet!" Rhea roared as she used the whip of the sword to launch him against one of the columns. He could feel how his bones shattered due to the impact, but the regenerative powers of the Crest of Flames were keeping him alive. Rhea was already on him, barely able to stop her thrust with the handle of his sword. He could feel the menacing cold coming from Rhea´s sword, while his sword was pulsating as if it was starting to beat like a living being.

"A usurper has no right to rule upon this world. Your fate is to die under my sword!"

"Our paths aren´t written, I will proof you that" he said as he charged his energy into the sword. With a strong attack he was able to break Rhea´s guard, his sword biting the flesh of her belly. From behind Edelgard released a charged attack that pierced through plate and flesh like hot butter.

Rhea crumbled on her legs, heavily bleeding from her injuries.

And then she laughed.

"You really think that you can defeat me like this? Another astounding failure from you, humans!" she said as ivory wings started to appear on her back, her hands claws sharper than most swords. "You must know your place in this world, you petty traitors"

"Careful, Edelgard!" he shouted when they were engulfed in a magic explosion. He was trying to find her, when a pair of claws grabbed him from behind and took him into the skies. The world beneath him was disappearing, only the clouds of the raging storm around them. He was trying to break free from her grab, but his efforts proved to be useless.

"You are too weak to compare to my power, your war was doomed to failure the moment you decided to fight against us" Rhea said as she flew even higher. White scales were starting to appear around her face, but the most unnatural feature were her eyes, looking at them was like looking to the sun, a powerful emerald light come from the depths of her body.

"I can´t allow myself to die by your hand, there is much I have to do before I die" he replied back as he accumulated power in both of his hands.

"Your life is mine to decide!"

"There you are wrong!" he shouted as he released his inner strength. The power of his magic weakened Rhea´s grab and in the split of a second, he was on top of her, his sword cutting the wings of Rhea off.

They were falling, the world beneath them dangerously approaching as they continued to fight against each other. He was bleeding heavily from Rhea´s attack, but she was as well. He was about to pierce through her heart, when both of her hands grabbed his head.

"Submit!" The power of Rhea was piercing through his body like lightning, his head feeling like it was about to explode as he felt how every bone withing him was breaking apart.

"I´ll rather die!" he said as the Sword of the Creator pierced through her body one more time, before it was too late. Released from her grip he could see how Rhea´s body was falling beneath him, but he didn´t have any energy to avoid the fall to his death. He was about to close his eyes, when he heard a familiar flapping of winds. His loyal mount was coming to his aid, its wings a new hope.

"Hello again, my dear friend" he smiled as he touched the Pegasus´s mane, when an arrow coming from below pierced through the poor beast´s eye. With a cry his old companion died, his body accompanying him in the fall.

"You bastard! You´ll pay for everything you have done!" It was Cyril. He had never seen him like that, pure hate pouring from his eyes. He was quickly approaching him using his mount, a black scaled wyvern. His axe was about to hit him, when it was stopped by another axe.

"You are another traitor! Rhea accepted both of you and yet you decided to side against her. You deserve to suffer a painful death!"

"One day death will come to us, but not today, of all lives you should be worried about your own" Edelgard said as she parried one of his attacks before slaying Cyril´s wyvern´s neck, the young boy falling to the depths of the abyss next to the monastery.

Reaching for her hand he was able to climb behind her, as they approached the ground.

"Thank you for saving my life" he was able to say. Despite being exhausted he knew that the battle was far from over.

"You would have done the same. But this battle is far from over" Edelgard said as they prepared to land. The land had shattered where Rhea had fallen, yet he could feel a strong energy coming from the destroyed boulders.

The battleground around them was scattered by the corpses of the fallen combatants, but the battle was still raging around them. Among the troops of the Church he could see that Catherine was quickly approaching their position, her Thunderbrand glowing like pure fire.

"I´ve been searching for you, traitor. Your time to pay for your crimes has come at last"

"Wait Catherine. He is mine" said a voice from the depths of the ground. Rhea was standing once again, green blood still pouring from her head. "Did you really think that a little fall would destroy me? The punishment for you has just begun!" Rhea said as her body started to change, her neck growing longer as a new pair of wings appeared on her back. In a few seconds the Rhea he knew was no more, a giant ivory dragon in front of him. "Catherine, get rid of the child, I don´t want her to pester us any longer"

"Rhea…Understood" Catherine said with a quick nod as a reaction to the sudden transformation of the archbishop.

"Don´t worry about me, I can take care of her" Edelgard said as she prepared to face Catherine, the duel between both worlds about to start.

…

"You are a weakling, you are just blocking my attacks, you are too slow to hit me, old man" he said as he tried to cut the neck off of the old man in front of him with his scythe.

"You were an instructor at this place as well, Jeritza, yet you have come to this place to bring more unnecessary destruction. I´ll protect the king with my life!"

"I´m not interested in that little boy, I told you. The monastery is about to end in our control, you would be wise to surrender"

"Not with scum like you, a bastard that kills innocent without blinking an eye. You are a monster!"

"And you are correct, I´m a monster and I don´t pretend to be otherwise"

"Have you ever felt guilty about the crimes you commit? Do you have any soul under the helmet you use to cover your face?"

"I used to have one, not anymore"

"Only a coward hides behind a mask!"

"And only an idiot would not be being using a helmet at the battlefield, now die, you are boring me" he said as he charged his scythe with a thunder spell. The shield of the old man finally was destroyed. Gilbert tried to hit him with the battle axe, but was exhausted and failed the hit. With a jump he ended up behind him as he used his scythe to cut the tendons of his feet off. Unable to move or stand up, Gilbert tried to fight back, but he knocked him down to the ground with a hit to the face, which broke his nose.

"Are you ready to die?"

"If with my dead I can save his majesty then I will honorably take it"

"There is no honor in death, you only speak nonsense" he prepared to finish him off when a magic spell impacted into him sending him to the ground. He could sense he was bleeding, an ice javelin piercing through the plate of his armor. The author of such spell was a red-haired girl, that hurried up to Gilbert´s place.

"Father! Are you ok?"

"Annette, you must leave this place…his Highness must be protected, this battle is lost, the monastery is gone"

"That was an impressive spell, young girl, but it isn´t quite enough" he said as he stood up again, but his advanced was stopped as three more students appeared.

"The Death Knight, uh, a worthy opponent at least"

"Take it easy, Felix, this is not the time to get cocky"

"If it weren´t by me all of you would be in a mess already"

The three of them were holding relics. Things were about to get interesting.

"If you are so confident about your skills, then come at me with all you have"

The young boys were strong, but they were reckless in their attacks and left too many openings. With a thunder discharge he got rid of the red haired one while he parried one attack from the swordsman, before quickly exchanging a blow against the blonde woman. The styles of both combatants were completely different. While the young girl was measuring every attack, before trying to aim at the junctures of his heavy armor, the young man was trying to overcome him with sheer strength.

"I feel rage in you, you don´t fight like your friends"

"I don´t fight like a knight, if that´s what you are saying. You are a tough opponent. Enemies like you is what I need if I want to get stronger"

"Then allow me to show my force" he said as he used a wide dash to parry both of the attacks aimed at him. The blow was so strong that sent both of his adversaries to the ground. He was approaching them when an arrow hit him from behind. When he looked behind him, he could see a grey-haired young boy with green eyes at one of the roofs.

The next thing he felt was a piercing pain. When he looked at his stomach, he could see a couple of ice spears biting his flesh. He was preparing to attack the red-haired girl, when he received the attack from one of the relics, the red-haired man was standing up again, although he was breathing with difficulty.

"This pain…is nothing. Are you going to claim the price?" he said as he looked at them.

"I´ll do it" Gilbert said as he slowed approached him, accompanied by his daughter. "You are a monster and I can´t let them to have your filthy blood in their hands"

"You really think that you have the moral high ground, but you are a murderer just like me" he chuckled. "The only difference is that I´m not willing to continue the farce of knighthood. I´ve killed people like you all my life; you feel highly of yourselves, but in the end, you are nothing but scum"

"Enough of your insolence. Jeritza, I don´t know how you ended up like this, but I will put an end to your existence now" Gilbert said as he raised his axe.

"Too slow" he thought as he avoided the hit. A quick counterattack disarmed him as he cut through his leg, making him fall to the ground. The young boy tried to react, but he was faster and he left him unconscious with a spell to the chest. He was avoiding one of the arrows of the other when he saw a silver lightning from behind. He was barely able to avoid the attack. Looking at his attacker, he realized it was Gilbert´s daughter.

"I won´t let you kill them!"

"Killing or being killed that´s the only reason to exist in this world. Everything else is a lie, a lie that only serves to make us feel safer"

"Your mind is twisted if you really think like that"

"I´m the monster that everyone needs. Everyone needs something to hate if they want to fight together. I see hate in your eyes, try and kill me if you are willing to act according to your words"

Scythe and axe impacted against each other, sparks coming from his weapon. Charging his scythe once again he attacked her, but the moment that the scythe met the axe an explosion sent him to the ground.

"You charged your weapon with protective magic, smart"

"I´ll put an end to this!" the young girl said as she charged at him.

"Stop! Don´t do it" a young woman he knew too well said as she stood between her and the rest of the students.

"Mercie, what are you doing? He is a monster, he is a murderer, he is…"

"He is my brother, Annie and even if he has turned into a monster, I still love him" Mercedes said as tears started to leave her eyes.

"Mercie…"

"We have to leave this place immediately" Gilbert said as he looked at the distance. Alois was leading what remained of the Church troops as they were evacuating the monastery. "We have no more time" he said as he took care of a still unconscious Dimitri.

He was feeling weak after the battle, but he was feeling even weaker with her presence in front of her.

"Leave me"

"Now that I have found you, no Emile, I´ll stay with you and I will find the truth about what happened that day" Mercedes said before looking at Annette. "Annie, I´ll stay here, take care of the others for me"

"But, Mercie…if you stay here you will be imprisoned by the imperial troops"

"Don´t worry about me, I hope I can see you once again…at a more peaceful time"

"Mercie…" Tears were starting to leave Annette´s eyes, but the sound of battle was coming closer. "it´s a promise then. Be safe, we´ll meet again!" Annette said as she casted a spell to bring her unconscious friends into safety.

"I will pray for you as well" Mercedes said as she observed how her friends left before taking his helm off.

"What happened to you, Emile? Why have you been hiding your identity all this time"

"You should have run away with your friends, run away to a safer place"

"I did it once and I regretted it all my life I won´t do it again. I´m your sister after all" Mercedes said with a sad smile as he looked at him, and for an instant he felt like he was a child again, when the world was simpler yet more beautiful.

But those times were far gone, only death and suffering remained within him.

"Leave this place, it´s not safe anymore" he said as he saw the explosions happening on the battlefield miles away from them.

"I told you…"

"I know, but this is not the place to talk. I need to make sure to talk to you later, until then leave me alone" He said as he put his helmet on again, leaving his sister behind.

….

"The immaculate one has appeared, my lord"

"Finally, the final battle has come at last, we´ll crush both the fell star and the beast to assure our victory upon our enemies. Prepare our remaining troops to finish the assault"

"Understood"

…..

"In ancient times I used my true form to battle against our enemies. With this power I have never met defeat" The immaculate one said as she released a potent beam against him.

"Even the strongest warriors can have a defeat, and this will be the day of yours, Rhea"

"Don´t you understand? Sothis trusted me with the future and security of this world. Opposing my will is opposing the will of our creator"

"Sothis would have refused to perpetuate a world of inequalities"

"You know nothing about true suffering. If this world suffers is because of your wicked brethren, you should have been exterminated yet we were merciful enough to let you escape from your fate of extinction yet you are using what remains of my mother against me!"

"The crime committed on Sothis´s body is something I will avenge, but you can´t keep reigning over Fódlan. The fights of power, the death and suffering of many are consequences of your authority. I won´t use this sword to commit the atrocities you suffered ages ago"

"Your words are nothing but lies!" Rhea roared as she smashed the ground with her tail. Rhea was freezing the land around them with her potent beans, as he continued to repel her attacks with his sword. Ice and fire were impacting against each other while he danced around the Immaculate one. With each opening of her attacks he was able to attack the ivory scales, but she didn´t appear to be suffering great pain from them.

With each attack he could feel a stronger energy coming from the Sword of the Creator. A few meters from him, Edelgard was fighting against Catherine with everything she had; Catherine was looking for openings but Edelgard´s reach allowed her to keep her distance from her.

Rhea´s beam destroyed the land a few meters of him, but taking advantage of the opening he jumped on her head. He could feel and increasing strength coming from within his body as his Sword started to pierce through the scales of her skull. Rhea was roaring as she was trying to shake him off, her claws and tail trying to hit him in the process, but he continued nevertheless. He was about to succeed when an explosion made me him lose his balance.

They were shooting at them; monsters and giants of steel were attacking them as the giant creation of the Argarthans was approaching as well. Rhea tried to fly away, but giant chains trapped her as a giant hand took her.

"The cycle ends here" A metallic voice from within the giant said as Rhea was imprisoned between the creature´s hands. It then opened its mouth releasing a power beam against her, before brutally smashing her body to the ground, the land trembling as if an earthquake had just happened. And then the land around the crater was engulfed in potent explosions all kind of spells and weaponry used to annihilate whatever that remained alive after the brutal impact.

"I´ve waited a long time for this" Thales laughed as the dust started to fade away. After such attack it was impossible that she could have survived, yet he felt the battle wasn´t over yet.

"You mortals can´t understand the nature of divinity!" roared a voice from within the deeps of the earth as torrents of water started to fill the huge crater. "Mother, give me your strength, the power of the ancestors and help me to defeat my enemies. Give me the strength to achieve our revenge!"

A giant claw emerged from the crater, its ivory scales shining with new light as the Immaculate one raised once again from abyss, but it had changed. Its horns had acquired a heavenly blue color, while its eyes were filled with red rage.

"Filthy Argarthan, enemy of everything that is sacred. Today I will achieve my revenge, there will be no redemption for your souls, all of you shall perish upon my fury!" Rhea roared as her horns started to get even more brilliant. She then flew into the sky.

"Shoot her down!" Thales roared as all kind of projectiles flew over the sky, but all of them fell to the ground, frozen when they approached the celestial dragon in the sky.

"Edelgard, with me!" he shouted as he erected a magic barrier around them, the Sword of the Creator acting as a catalyst.

Rhea´s body was pulsating with its own light, a silver moon in the middle of a raging storm, even the everlasting rain had stopped as Rhea´s body grew brighter. Around them, the troops of the Argarthans were desperately trying to erect barriers while some of their units were trying to shoot Rhea down.

And then death descended upon the land.

A monstrous beam impacted into the ground sending a shockwave of true cold. He was feeling like his head was about to explode as the first cracks started to appear on their magic barrier.

"Stay with me!" said a softer voice next to him. It was Edelgard, who was placing her hands on the handle of the sword in the same way he was doing to keep the barrier working. Around them he could hear all kind of cries and explosions…

And then nothing, but silence. The barrier finally broke apart, but they were safe.

"What has happened to the world?" Edelgard muttered as she gave a look to the battlefield. There was nothing, but ice, broken weapons, beasts and humans scattered among the ice. Not even the giant colossus was left intact one of its legs, an arm and half its face destroyed by the strength of the attack.

"This is the power of the descendants of the Goddess. The water of desperation turned into ice by me fury" The Immaculate´s voice said from the heights, its voice a thunder. "Your armies had been destroyed and I´ve annihilated my ancient enemies, but it isn´t enough. Only death will purify your souls and those who are opposing to our divine rule" the majestic beast said as she started to grow brighter.

Another blast would certainly mean the end of them all, but there weren´t any options left. Were they doomed to die before a beast from ancient times?

He was still thinking when he felt a warm hand on his cheek.

"We can´t give up on hope, there is still much that needs to be done, falling now would achieve nothing but more pain and suffering"

It was true and her words gave him what he needed the most; hope.

As the Immaculate one grew even brighter, he closed his eyes, searching in the inner deeps of his soul, a giant crest appearing in front of him. When he opened his eyes, the Sword of the Creator was covered in flames, its length and size increased.

Light came from the Immaculate one once again, but this time he was prepared. Releasing all his powers through the sword, the flames met the ice of death. He could feel the strength behind Rhea´s attack, as the sword was demanding all of his energy, but he resisted. And then golden flames engulfed Rhea´s body as an explosion lightened the sky upon them.

The Immaculate one collapsed upon the ground with a roar. With its fall, the clouds of storms upon them started to disappear, the water that had been there since the beginning of the battle coming to an end.

"I can´t be defeated by someone like you, a traitor and a thief" Rhea roared, there were areas of her scales that there were partially melted, but her horns were still intact, monstrous amounts of energy still coming through them. "You might have been able to stop me once, but I won´t be stopped by you!" she roared as she ran upon them on her four limbs, her jaws wide opened as a blue light was accumulating within her.

"It´s going to shoot again!" Edelgard shouted but he was already charging at the Immaculate One.

"Take care of the rest on my behalf"

"No…wait!"

But the ancient beast was already on him. It released a beam of death as he released a thunder of fire through his swords as he jumped on the dragon´s chest.

"There is only one try" he thought as he unleashed what remained of his energy upon the beast´s chest. The explosion that followed, made the beast lose its balance, as the sword beneath it crumbled. He was about to jump away when a giant claw grabbed him.

"If I fall you will fall as well!"

They were falling, he tried to use his sword to stop his fall, but it failed. The world around him were just rocks and the roars of the immaculate one as the underground river beneath them grew bigger by the second. His body was exhausted, no energy left after all that had happened.

He then felt a freezing cold as darkness engulfed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since 天帝 means celestial emperor I think that you could name the children of the Goddess as 天竜, celestial dragons. Talking about dragon biology, Rhea is capable of storing great amounts of water within its body, which they turn into ice the moment they leave her body.
> 
> I won´t be jumping directly into the timeskip in case you are wondering.


	71. Times of leadership

**3/22 Lone moon**

"His Highness has returned!" announced one of the soldiers at the gates of the kingdom capital. Troops were preparing all around, plenty of spears, horses and axes ready for battle.

"War will certainly come to this place as well" he thought as he passed through the doors. After the fall of the monastery the situation had been rough for most of them. The morale of the troops was at its lowest and reports of their casualties didn´t make it any better.

"And then that giant monster attacked from the heights" he thought. Despite all his years at the service of the Church battling against countless enemies he wasn´t prepared to witness such deployment of forces. He wasn´t the most pious man, but he could understand now the ancient texts of old talking about the massive battles of times surrounded by myths and legends.

"Jeralt, what would you do if you were me? I don´t know what to do anymore" he muttered to himself. All these months he had seen nothing but good things coming from the kid. Even though he was so different to his father, he could now understand why his father loved him so much. It was impossible to think that he was pretending the whole time, making him feel confused about the next step to take. "I promised you to protect the kid, but I also swore alliance to the Church, what the hell am I supposed to do? Am I forced to break one oath to keep the other one?" According to Rhea, Byleth had been plotting against the Church, aiming to proclaim himself a new ruler of the world, but the Byleth he knew wasn´t like that. "If I could know what happened down there" he lamented, but his intents had proved to be useless. Rhea wasn´t willing to say anything else apart from what she had already said, and Flayn was too busy taking care of his brother Seteth. He lacked information, yet he could only walk forward.

"How are you feeling, Alois?" asked a voice next to him. It was Catherine. She had somehow survived the cataclysm that had happened next to the main grounds of the monastery, yet she had been changed by the battle. She still had many heavy wounds and he could see deep scars across the visible part of her body.

"Better than before, and you Catherine?"

"I will feel better when we take the monastery back from our enemies, until then the only thing that I can do is to prepare myself to avoid disappointing Lady Rhea" she said while looking at the distance. They had discovered an unconscious Rhea a couple of miles away from the monastery. How it had happened was unknown to them, but it could have been an attempt of taking her hostage. They were also able to find Cyril unconscious, but they hadn´t been able to find Shamir. "At least she wasn´t among the dead I could see in the battle" he thought, although that could mean anything.

"The Holy Kingdom has been kind enough to provide us with reinforcements. War has been declared between the two countries"

"How about the Leicester Alliance?"

"A council has been summoned; they are still discussing about it right now. Unfortunately, they have some pro-empire forces among them, but the Alliance is fragile and their members a bunch of cowards. They won´t be risking their lives unless they clearly know who is going to be the winner of this war. You went to the capital once before, right? To repel a group of pirates. If the Alliance can´t even protect its own capital from a group of bandits it is a clear example of their fragility"

"War" he thought. As a kid he had always dreamed about battles and glorious victories, but age had changed his vision about it. War and battles were nothing but suffering, a time when a father must bury his own son, when countless lives are lost for the sake of the powerful. He had a daughter and a wife he loved and he knew that they were in a safe place, but he could be counted as one of the fortunate to say so. Among his troops there were young soldiers that were just starting to bloom, yet they could die at any moment. How could they be so clueless about such risks?

"Catherine, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, go ahead"

"Why do you think that something like this has happened?"

"This is just the history of a treason to our benefactor. The nobles of the Empire are corrupted and they have crowned this new Emperor to unify the whole of Fódlan under their tyranny. We are the only ones that can possibly stop this madness. We might have suffered heavy losses, but they have suffered as well. We cannot surrender, if we do all those who have died by now would have died for nothing"

"And those that they can still live?" he was tempted to say but he remained silent as the continued approaching the royal castle, the banners of the Holy Kingdom proudly watching them.

….

"Nephew, it´s been a while since the last time I´ve seen you" A middle aged man with pale blue eyes said as they approached. "Lady Rhea, forgive my insolence, I should have realized you were among the committee" he said as he knelt down before her.

"The Holy Kingdom and the Church had been allies since the foundation of this great country and now in times of need I come to you. You must already know what has happened to Garreg Mach"

"I do, the imperial eagle is extending its claws across the whole Fódlan. This will mark the beginning of a new era"

"And a new era demands new blood, uncle. That´s why I´m here; to assume my responsibility as the next heir of House Blaiddyd. The Holy Kingdom will face times of great danger and I´m willing to assume such burdens. The Emperor is fighting for her distorted vision of the future. It is our responsibility to protect the people against the imperial threat"

"In that case, please approach the throne" Dimitri´s uncle said as they entered the throne room. The throne was made out of silver and wood, the colors of the north, silver lion heads on its armrests.

"Who comes to claim the throne of the lion?"

"Me, Dimitri Blaiddyd son of Lambert and heir of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus"

"Are you willing to sacrifice everything you have, everything you had and everything you will ever have for the greater good of the people of this great land?"

"I do, even if it costs my own sanity, I will assume the burdens of the throne as my own, I will protect the weak, embrace knighthood and serve the Goddess as her paladin"

"Archbishop, confidant of the Goddess in this forsaken land, are you against this man?"

"I am not, the Goddess speaks through me and agrees wholeheartedly with his coronation. His heart is pure and will bring us a brighter future to this land in times of need. The Goddess favors those that fight for her cause and there is no doubt that will aid him in the battle against the vile empire" Rhea said as she stepped forward and took the crown from Dimitri´s uncle´s hands. "The people of this land trust you with their lives, protect them against the evil and those who sin against the Goddess"

"I promise that I will fight for them as long as my heart beats and I promise that I will bring to justice those who had done so much harm" Dimitri said as the crown was placed upon his head, his eyes filled with resolution.

"It is settled then, raise not like a man, but as the ruler of this nation. You will face many obstacles, but with the favor of the Goddess and the people you will bring true prosperity to this land. Nihil prius fide" Rhea said as she helped Dimitri to stand up again, the moment he did so everyone in the room knelt down out of respect.

"Nihil prius fide" Dimitri replied back before looking at his soldiers.

"Long live the king of Lions!"

"Thank you, everyone, I promise all of you that I will protect this land and its inhabitants. For now, we have to prepare our next strategy against the advance of the Empire forces"

"The Empire has been improving its supply lines after the fall of the monasteries" Rhea said as she started to cast a spell, creating a map of Fódlan in front of them. "For their attack against the monastery they have passed through the lands of the Leicester Alliance, but it seems that they are preparing to create a new front to the west of Fódlan"

"They will certainly try to invade those lands to have an alternative supply line in case that the Leicester Alliance finally decides to close its borders" Dimitri said as he observed the map. "I can´t really tell for sure right now, but I wouldn´t trust the Alliance´s stance on this war. Furthermore, the Alliance forces are weaker than our own"

"Even in that case we should pressure the Alliance leaders so they avoid any possible deals with the Empire forces" Catherine commented. "The Alliance is a land of forests and plains. They can produce enough nourishment to keep military campaigns for years. If those goods end up in imperial hands the situation will be wire"

"It is true that this land is poor regarding resources, but the Empire shouldn´t belittle us for it. Our people are truly resilient, they are used to face times of great peril and we will give the Empire a bad time if they think they can crush us. The weather of this land is harsh, the imperial troops won´t be used to the harsh winters here. For now, we need to prepare a defensive line to slow down any possible advance of the enemy troops. Tell the villagers of the areas next to the Empire to evacuate immediately, tell them to set fire to their homes and crops, we will make sure that they have another place to take shelter"

"Understood, your majesty" said a soldier while bowing before leaving the place.

"The new Emperor is young and will certainly try to end this war quickly. I will make sure to reorganize the remaining knights of Seiros"

"That´s a great idea. We´ll send small squads to harass their convoys the moment they enter our territory. We´ll make sure that they understand that invaders aren´t welcomed in this land. Our counteroffensives will take place from Arianhood. That fortress must be protected at all costs, it is the key to the heart of Faerghus. If we maintain it until winter comes, we will be able to lead a counteroffensive from there"

"The loss of the monastery had been a tremendous moral defeat to our side. However, if we can counterattack the upcoming invasion, we will boost the morale of our troops. This war hasn´t been decided yet, they might have won one battle, but we will win the war and make sure that they suffer for their defiance. There will be no redemption for their souls" Rhea said as she joined her hands in a praying gesture.

"What do we have here? Dimitri, I didn´t expect to see you here" a woman with a generous bust said, when her eyes froze upon Rhea. "Lady Rhea, I didn´t expect to see you here. When I heard news from the monastery, I expected the worst of outcomes"

"You should have more faith since the Goddess is on our side. The monastery might have fallen, but my resolution has never been stronger. The end of this war will only see us as the victors"

"Cornelia, I have turned into the new king of this land so you should show more respect"

"My apologies…your majesty"

"Uncle, you are leaving this place, in case that something happens to me you would inherit the throne unless I have an heir of my own. Lady Cornelia will accompany you"

"Your majesty, I beg you to have me by your side, I will give you council for the upcoming war"

"Your presence might be required soon, until now obey my command" Dimitri said looking directly at the woman in front of him into the eye.

"Understood…your majesty" the lady said before leaving the place accompanied by Rufus. He couldn´t explain why, but there was something he didn´t like about that woman.

"The regency of the Kingdom had brought too much corruption to this land, but today that changes. We will prevail in this war and for that to happen we need to bring new blood to the government of the kingdom" Dimitri said before looking at one of the soldiers. "Search for Rodrigue, I will name him general of the main kingdom armies. Tell him to come to the capital at once"

"Understood!"

The moment the soldier left another one took its place.

"Your majesty, here is the list you were asking for!"

"A list, what is it, Dimitri?" the archbishop asked.

"A list of those with dubious alliances. In war certainty is key to win battles and we cannot allow to have traitors among our lines. This is a list of those. Bring them to me and I will serve them the King´s justice"

"Spoken like a true king" Rhea said with a wide smile. "You are the only one legitimated enough to rule over this land. Even though the Church might have lost the monastery there are still many loyal to the word of the Goddess" she then looked at some of her soldiers "Send priests to every corner of this land of Fódlan to spread the news of the savior king. Tell everyone that he is the only one recognized by the Goddess to rule over this land. Tell them that the Empire has forsaken the Goddess and the cause of the new Emperor is doomed to fail"

"As you wish"

"If the emperor is so confident about her manifest, we will make our own. Those who support her will be denied the access to heaven. Faith is stronger than feeble words, most will remain loyal to us"

…

"Well, it seems that war has already exploded" he said as he took a look at the council around him. His grandfather was already too ill and he had inherited his position while he was staying at bed. "We´ve witnessed it ourselves. Both forces have suffered heavy losses and strange devises had been deployed on the battlefield"

"Even a giant dragon, isn´t that scary?" Hilda muttered a few meters away from him.

"We haven´t received any new reports from the frontline, but it seems that this war is between the Empire and the alliance between the Holy Kingdom and The Church. However, I think that the balance of power is in favor of the Empire right now. It would be surely advantageous to us that we ally with them before they decided that we are too much of a nuance" Count Gloucester said, next to him Lorenz was sitting, his face emotionless.

"I knew that you were ambitious, but I´ve never thought of you as a coward" Judith, the hero of the Alliance, said with an irritated look. "Tell me, how much money have you received from the Empire these days?"

"I will not tolerate such insolent words in my presence!"

"I don´t care about your lack of tolerance, I´m just speaking the truth. War has just begun and you just want us to join one of the factions. It is easy to you, since you won´t be on the battlefield, but what would happen if it were your own son the one that had to been sent to die?"

"I would assume the risks of my position with great honor"

"Young boy, I appreciate your words, but your father wouldn't move an inch unless he had all odds on his favor. Joining a war is something really easy to do, but finding an end to one is a completely different matter. You really have the manners of a politician, you are spineless without the spirit of a warrior, Sir Gloucester"

"You are not even addressing me correctly!"

"Enough both of you, don´t you see that fighting among each other is the least desirable thing we could do right now? This Alliance was born because its founders shared a common vision of the world. If we keep fighting against each other we´ll achieve nothing"

"Sorry about it"

"Even if we keep our neutrality for now, it would be unwise to allow the Imperial troops to roam freely through our lands, Judith, make sure that the borders of our land have enough garrisons"

"Understood"

"We are walking through thin ice. We need to work with each other if we want to see another day"

"You will only buy time like that, but you are the leader of this Alliance" Lord Gloucester muttered, although there was more resentment than anything in his words.

"Time is gold if you know how to spend it wisely. I assure all of you that I won´t waste the time that has been granted to me. There are many things that they still need to get done, but first I need to attend some private meetings" he said as he stood up.

…..

"Claude, what are you up to?"

"What do you mean, Lysithea?"

"I know that look in your eyes, you haven´t given up on whatever you are planning right?"

"As sharp as ever, you are truly brilliant. You are right, I can just give up on my dreams for a better Fódlan, a Fódlan that doesn´t create walls to isolate itself from the rest of the world. A Fódlan where we can truly be free"

"Some things that you say sound similar to what Edelgard says. In that case why not joining them? The Professor is on her side too"

"It´s just a matter of trust. No one of us trust the other enough to give up on our own dreams. Furthermore, I can´t just surrender the Alliance to the Empire, that would mark the start of a civil war here and that´s the least desirable outcome I can wait for"

"Who do you think is going to win the war?"

"To be honest, I don´t know yet. The most powerful countries of this land are going to fight against the other like the times of old. The Empire might have bigger armies, but we can´t forget about the Church. The Knights of Seiros are strong in the Holy Kingdom, and they have many elite units among them. The Professor is strong, but my informants had told me that he hasn´t reappear after their fight against Rhea"

"Really?" she asked shocked. "Do you think he…"

"That he died? Not so sure about it, anything could be true or a petty lie. For now, there is nothing else I can say about this. By the way, what are you going to do, Lysithea?"

"I need to return to Ordelia, to make sure that everyone is safe. My parents must be worried about me and it is my responsibility as their daughter"

"You are really a good girl" Claude said while patting her head.

"I´m not…"

"Claude, we need to talk for a moment" Hilda´s brother said as he approached him. "The west might be in a difficult situation, but the east needs some attention as well"

"You don´t really like wasting time, uh. Sorry Lysithea, I´m busy now, but I hope that everything goes well for you" Claude said before following the alliance´s greatest war hero.

"The Alliance hasn´t decided yet which side to take, and Claude isn´t willing to sacrifice his own objectives. In that case what should I do?" she wondered as she walked through the crowded halls. Her time was limited and she had the feeling she wouldn´t live to see the changes everyone was talking about, yet she needed to do something. Staying at home while doing nothing would be a waste of time and she didn´t want to waste her already limited life.

The sky outside was already starting to turn red. "Red, the color of blood" she muttered while she casted a flying spell as she flew forwards the lands of her parents.

….

**3/23**

"Has someone found him already?" A week had already passed since the fall of the monastery, yet she couldn´t avoid feeling depressed with what had happened. Of every possible outcome, she didn´t expect something like that to happen.

"Lady Edelgard, our most capable explorers had been sent to the deeps of this land, but they have discovered nothing"

"Perhaps they should search for him better"

"Lady Edelgard, I can understand your worries, but no matter how much we search it has no use to postpone our advance. Right now, the forces of the Church and the Holy Kingdom will be plotting our demise, we need to strike them swiftly before they can fight back. In the memory of our Professor"

"Don´t talk about him like he is dead! I know, I know somehow that he is still alive, I can feel it"

"Lady Edelgard…forgive my intromission, my words had no ill intention. I just wish for the best of outcomes" Hubert apologized with a deep bow.

"I´m the one that should be sorry about my behavior. You are right, war won´t just stop because we are searching for him. The only thing that we can do is to keep forward"

"That´s the words I wanted to hear from you, Edie" Dorothea said as she approached them, with her came the rest of her companions, her friends.

"You are always bossy and that´s annoying, but seeing you so gloomy is something even more annoying. Don´t worry, Edelgard, the Professor will be fine, he must be taking a nap somewhere. I would do the same if I were having part in this war"

"I truly believe that the Professor is alive, he taught us how to fight and carry on even without him. If we give up now it would mean nothing, we just need to keep going, to prove the Professor that we can continue by your own, to prove to him that we have truly learned" Ferdinand said as he knelt down before her. "I, Ferdinand von Aegir, will keep fighting in the name of the Professor until he returns here and I will do my best to correct the mistakes that my father did while in power"

"And I accept your oath"

"The Professor hasn´t reunited with the spirits yet, I can feel it in the air. This is the chance we have to prove ourselves in the battlefield. We need to protect his warrior´s pride"

"Hell yeah, we´ll do it. He had prepared us all this time for something like this. We can´t just stay here doing nothing, we need to act!"

"Being outside is dangerous, but even I need to do something about it. The Professor was always nice to me, walking forward is the only thing I can do"

"I can´t thank all of you enough for your words. You give me the strength that I need to keep going forward"

"Lady Edelgard, what is our next course of action?"

"We need to take care of the western area of Faerghus to connect the monastery to the territories of the Empire. Invading the Alliance would mean that we would have to battle in two fronts and that is something I want to avoid at all costs. The western area of the Holy Kingdom has many resources that could possibly be useful for our campaign and the more we go to the north the harsher the conditions will be"

"The capital of the Holy Kingdom won´t fall easily; but before taking a chance at the capital Arianrhod stands in our way"

"It´s true, but we will have to leave some of our armies here and at the border of the Alliance to avoid an attack from behind. The situation in the Alliance is unstable, but they will attack at any sign of weakness"

"If they attack, they will regret doing so, but I don´t think they would do such risky maneuver, at least for now" Ferdinand said while looking at a map of Fódlan.

"We need to take care of the monastery as well. The walls are strong, but we need to repair them if we want to use it as a base of operations"

"In that case, how about you command the rebuilding of the monastery, Linhardt?"

"That sounds too annoying. I think I will pass on it, thank you"

"You could use the time of rebuilding as an opportunity to investigate about the mysteries lingering in the depths of the monastery"

"That doesn´t sound that annoying. We barely know anything about the Immaculate One, perhaps there is some information about it. It is really fascinating that Rhea has the ability to transform into a dragon"

"More than interesting I would say it is scary, though" Bernadetta said with a nervous look.

"We don´t have time to waste, we need to keep marching forward. The future of a better Fódlan is in our hands!" she said as she looked at them. "Byleth, I promise I will take care of all of them, I will make sure that no one of them dies so you can meet all of us again. Until the day our paths cross again" she said to herself as she observed how dawn started to come to the land.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nihil prius fide means literally "nothing before the faith" just in case anyone is wondering


	72. Determination 決意

**6/1 Garland Moon**

"Another abandoned village" she muttered as they approached the center of what remained of the village. The ashes in the ground were still warm and even some goods of the villagers could be seen in the surroundings. "They must have run away in the middle of the night"

"All our armies are reporting similar events and we haven´t faced yet significant opposition from the kingdom forces. Our spies have reported that a strong army is preparing to leave from Arianhood. The situation in the northern regions of the Holy Kingdom is unknown, although it is highly probable that they are mobilizing their armies to the south to strengthen their southern armies"

"And they will be most likely reinforced by the forces scattered in this region. They aren´t running away, they are preparing to fight back, as a tide" It was evident what was the plan of the kingdom forces; they were letting them getting into their territory so they could surround them when there was no possible escape. She could feel a warm breeze touching her skin, but she knew that the good weather in the north was short-lived. And when the weather changed, they would be vulnerable with a bigger army to feed, the harvest they could have used to sustain them destroyed.

"The Kingdom is expecting to defeat us when winter comes, but they will wait in vain. If we can conquer some of the fortresses along the way we can withstand the coldest months. We need to prepare safe areas to place our provisions. Any news from the Church forces?"

"Complete silence, but it is highly doubtful that they are idle. Lady Edelgard, please take a look at this" Hubert said as he offered her two documents.

"I guess that the Church has been busy as of lately" she said as she started to read the document.

"Inhabitants of Fódlan, please listen to the Goddess´s voice. A demon is sitting on the throne of the Adrestian Empire, her ambitions endless. She wants to drown this world under the blood of thousands of innocents, from the elders to the newborns, no one is safe. Her army will abduct your children so she can bath in their blood.

The imperial army is filled with vile beasts, creatures that will burn this land and rape your daughters and women. However, this land hasn´t been forgotten by the Goddess. Our merciful mother has chosen a new champion of the Faith. King Dimitri will protect all of you in this sacred war. He has promised to pierce through the heart of that vile beast to spare Fódlan from a dark future. If you see any sign of the imperial army, run away with everything you have. We must leave nothing to the enemy. Your houses can be replaced but your lives are priceless to the Goddess. Fear not the dark times to come, in the end justice will prevail"

The other document was an illustration where she was depicted as a monstrous figure, two horns on her head while the imperial army slaughtered a kingdom village.

"Should I add horns to my outfit? It seems that´s how an important part of this country is going to see me"

"I highly advise against joking about this matter. The fact that these papers are in a small village like this means that this message has already been spread"

"Then it´s not surprising that we have only found empty villages up to this point. Fear is a strong tool to control the actions of many, but that alone won´t do anything to their cause. They are also spreading hate against us and resentment has much more unexpected consequences, but our main worry should be the Church and the Kingdom army. Send scouts in all directions, make sure that no one is observing us. We can´t tolerate sabotage operations against us"

"Understood, Lady Edelgard" Hubert said as he bowed, leaving her alone.

"The situation in the west is escalating quickly, but to the east everything is too silent. Claude, what are you up to?"

….

**6/3**

He was surrounded by complete silence, the only thing he could hear was his own breath as he examined one of the crest stones of the mausoleum.

"How interesting" he thought as he felt a familiar spark coming through the ancient stone. The crest stone he was holding was of a small size, a grey color on its surface. Stones like that where the ones that were present in the relics, weapons of great power capable of causing great destruction.

"But like this, without a weapon to wield, its utility is quite limited" he thought. He could sense strength coming from within the orb, yet most of its capabilities were sealed within it. Without a weapon and a compatible crest wielder, the power they could release was quite limited, yet even in that case, its power was enough to momentary overcome experimented warriors.

"There are many crest stones like this, yet there aren´t so many relics"

"That doesn´t mean that there weren´t in the past"

"Professor Hanneman! I thought you still needed to rest from your injuries"

"I´m better than ever before and Edelgard has allowed me to continue my studies as long as I stay here until the war ends. I can´t ask for nothing more. Furthermore, Manuela is still here, taking care of the injured and her spells had helped me a lot to get better"

"I see, well, if you are feeling better, I don´t mind you being here. Tell me, what do you think about this room?"

"I must admit that I had never heard about a place like this before. The most plausible theory is that this place belongs to the most ancient part of the monastery, but the mechanisms to access this room are too advanced. Returning to your initial thoughts, I do think that these relics were employed once as weapons. You can see that its form is ready to be added to a weapon, but we can only speculate about what happened to it. From time to time, new relics appear, although some of them are just rediscoveries of weapons forgotten long ago.

As you know, to make a hero relic function properly, it is required the relic itself and the Crest stone"

"But Professor Hanneman, there is an exception to that rule, the Professor is able to wield the Sword of the Creator without requiring a Crest stone"

"I have really thought about this matter and my search for the truth has brought me to do things that some people could consider immoral" Hanneman said as he made sure that they were alone. "I know that you are interested in the search of truth as I am, but on this matter, precaution is highly needed. Are you able to keep a secret?"

"I do"

"Well, I stumbled into Jeralt´s diary. I knew that it was disrespectful, but curiosity forced me to read its content. It seems that something happened to Byleth when he was born. According to the description made by the person that checked the newborn, Byleth did have a pulse, but his heart wasn´t beating any longer"

"That would be something impossible. The only thing that could explain such event would be the use of necromancy. However, necromancy only allows to manipulate human bodies up to an extent, but those bodies move clumsily and are uncapable of following the most basic orders. Our Professor is capable of doing many things and his agility is nothing to belittle. He acts like a normal human being"

"You are correct on your assumption, but I highly doubt that a professional or Jeralt himself were just imagining things when that happened. I thought as well that that was something, I was uncapable to explain, but one of my experiments made me think about a hidden possibility. As you know, without a crest stone a relic is unable to release its power. I decided to extract the crest stone from its weapon and tried to use it and as I expected, nothing happened. However, I then decided to use the weapon holding the crest stone on my other hand…and it worked! My own body acted as the nexus between the weapon and the crest stone. You are wielding a crest stone, what are you feeling as you touch it?"

"It feels as if I was charging an electric spell"

"Exactly! We can recognize up to a degree the energy released from the crest stones as that kind of energy. That would explain why Jeralt and the doctor could feel a pulse yet not a heartbeat and that would also explain why Byleth is able to wield a crestless sword. He is acting as the catalyst, as the crest stone of the mighty sword"

"So, you are saying that Byleth has a crest stone in his body and that would be the answers to some of the many mysteries surrounding him?"

"Yes, you are right"

"But what would be the effects of having a crest stone inside you? Even when they don´t have a relic, the crest stones continue to release energy. Those amounts of energy would certainly affect somehow a human body"

"You have already answered yourself, Linhardt. Think about it, Byleth suddenly changed when he was trapped by the forces responsible of Jeralt´s death. His once navy-blue hair and eyes changed into light green. There is no magic that could explain such change. I could also sense that his capabilities were enhanced after releasing himself from that trap"

"That would mean that the crest stone reacted to whatever that happened inside that portal. However, the Professor´s personality wasn´t affected by it. He still acted like usual. If the crest was capable of making such changes in his body, wouldn´t that affect his personality as well? Powerful spells are capable of changing the way human minds work and that´s talking about an influence from the outside. If the changed happened from within, it would be more logical to expect more changes in that case"

"Who says that those changes were present already? Byleth was known as the ashen demon, a heartless mercenary capable of facing any adversity without showing his emotions. However, as time passed, he appeared to show more emotions, why do you think that he was so emotionless at the beginning? According to Jeralt´s diary he never smiled when he was a baby"

"That could be explained by the influence of the crest stone... I see, the crest stone did have some influence on his personality as well as his body, but in that case, what is the truth Professor?"

"The only truth I know is that he has been showing his emotions bit a bit until now. I don´t know why, but it seems that whatever that remained dormant within his body is starting to awaken once again"

"But until the Professor returns, we won´t be able to test such theories. Until then we are powerless, although you have enlightened me with your words, Professor Hanneman. I would have never thought about the possibility of having a crest stone stored in your body"

"Learning and committing mistakes is the process to access to true knowledge, but you are right. Until Byleth returns we have nothing else to say about that matter, but that doesn´t mean that our responsibility as researchers ends here. We must make sure that we can discover as many things as possible about the crest stones"

"Professor Hanneman, can I ask you something?"

"For sure, Linhardt, go ahead"

"Do you think he is alive?"

"Of course, someone so powerful like him, wouldn´t fall even against a powerful being like Rhea. He has survived many things during years, the battle of the monastery was just another battle to him"

"I see, that is something relieving to hear. I must admit that sometimes I feel worried about his disappearance, but he isn´t the kind of person to just die, right? There isn´t a logical explanation to this feeling, it´s just my instinct telling me so"

"Then you should follow it, giving up is the worst thing that could happen to a researcher like me and you. Any news from the front lines?"

"The rest are advancing pretty quickly. I haven´t received any relevant reports of resistance to the west and in the east the situation remains calm. Don´t you think it is strange that Rhea hasn´t attacked us again?"

"I doubt she can abuse her powers, otherwise she would already be attacking us, which is a relieving thing to know. It means that her powers aren´t completely unnatural, there is something that you can somehow analyze in a logical manner"

"The Immaculate one was said to be the loyal companion of saint Seiros. However, I doubt that I can believe anymore everything that has been written in the library. It is really shocking how difficult it is to differentiate the truth from lies. It makes me feel sleepy"

"If you are feeling like that, you should return to the surface. Overworking isn´t something good for your health"

"You are right, I will accompany you then"

….

Everything was too cold, he couldn´t feel anything. The world around him filled with darkness.

"We were this close to achieve their annihilation" he thought as he tried to fight his tiredness off, he needed to carry on fighting against their sworn enemy.

"Master, please open your eyes"

That was easier said than done, but he tried nevertheless, around him the world was covered in white death, everything could be better than remaining in such place.

He was dazzled by a strong light the moment he was able to open his eyes.

"Where am I?"

"We have brought you back to our main base, Master Thales, wit what remained of our army" It was the voice of Myson, one of his most high ranked officials, his right hand at the government of Agartha.

"What do you mean with what remains?" he tried to get up, but he felt an intense pain coming from one of his arms and legs. When he looked at them, he realized both of them pierced by several ice javelins, its color red because of the blood they had been absorbing.

"Our main forces have been destroyed in battle. We were at the epicenter of the explosion and the casualties we suffered were catastrophic, not even our ancient machinery could outstand such degree of destruction"

Hearing such report was a hard pillow to shallow. He knew that they didn´t have the numbers to rule over the world, they relied on their technological advantage to have the upper hand in the conflict, but with most of their weaponry gone, their situation was dire at best.

"What happened then?"

"The Immaculate one and the Fell star fought against each other as they fell to the abyss next to the monastery. The immaculate one appears to have survived and is leading the resistance from their new base located at the Holy Kingdom.

"And the Fell star?"

"We have no reports about it"

At least a good thing to know, but that could mean anything until they discover its body.

"We need to find the Sword of the Creator then. Finding it is the key to keep our ambitions afloat"

"Are you planning to give it to that thief? We already have a prototype that could be used by him, but it isn´t perfected yet"

"Not for that. The energy stored within that sword is unvaluable. If we can obtain it, we would have an infinite surplus of energy, allowing us to use our most potent armament in an unlimited manner. Furthermore, we need to take it back, before it loses stability or we might get eradicated by our own creation"

"What do you mean by that, Master?"

"Before losing consciousness, I could feel it. The sword was finally releasing its true strength. When I created it, I used all my knowledge to make sure that the volatile structure of the Fell Star remained under control, but that meant partially sealing its powers. However, if the sword was able to release such amount of power, it means that the seals are starting to fade away. Without someone to control what rests within, the destruction of this land could happen at any moment. The sword remembers"

"Are you implying that the sword is sentient?"

"I wouldn´t define it as a consciousness of its own, but it isn´t completely lifeless. Rage, hatred, despair, that is what is sealed within the sword. As it absorbed the powers of the Fell star, fragments of such emotions were transferred to it. It was something impossible to avoid since what lies beneath is the result of the true nature of the sword. All relics up to an extent have the same characteristics. However, the Sword of the Creator as the most powerful relic ever created has properties that escape to the comprehension of a normal human mind"

"A weapon capable of such degree of destruction… Was it really wise to create such thing? Something with such power in the wrong hands could mean the doom of many"

"Between the risk of death and the possibility of victory I chose the latter. There is no point on wondering about it anymore. We need to find the Sword and keep it for our own purposes" he said as he tried to get up, but a piercing pain paralyzed him. "Why haven´t you gotten rid of this nuisance?"

"Master, we have done everything we could, but those ice spears are cursed. It is an ancient magic that surpasses our own. This is the true power of the Crest of Seiros"

"Then you know what you have to do"

"Master, it is going to be a painful experience. We should at least apply…"

"Do it. My hatred against them will be my shield. When I raise again, I will be stronger and I will finish what I started"

"As you wish, my lord"

He could feel intense pain as his own flesh started to turn apart, but he remained conscious.

"The pain I feel will be nothing to the one I will make you experience. Everyone will tremble before me, not even gods will be safe from my ire"

…..

**6/6**

"Lorenz, thank you for staying with me"

"Enough of your meaningless words, Claude. It doesn´t suit you well at a time like this. I know why you have summoned me here, to the capital; to have my father under control"

"You have seen through me; you really have the innate talent to turn into a great politician" he laughed. "Your father is a risk to the mere existence of the Alliance. If he was the leader of it, we would have been fighting already against the kingdom"

"I don´t see any problems with that kind of reasoning. The armies of the Empire can´t be compared to those of the Holy Kingdom. And the Church has suffered greatly after this assault. It is a matter of time that they are defeated, unless they win a decisive battle or the Emperor dies"

"You are right about the might of the imperial army, but that doesn´t mean that we should surrender so easily. Agreeing with such position would only mean that we would have to face civil war here, and in a civil war no one wins"

"Crows will most likely disagree with you. So, you think that by keeping me prisoner you will make sure that my father won´t stand against you. Am I mistaken?"

"I´m not considering you a prisoner, just a guest. Furthermore, I wouldn´t like to resort to violence since we have been together for many months. I have rooms suitable to you. I don´t think you will be missing anything here, in the capital"

"I thought you wouldn´t be capable of something like that, but I can see the truth in your eyes. My father truly has a worthy opponent"

"If you were suspicious about the reasons you were summoned here, why did you come nevertheless?"

Lorenz took a look sip before answering to his questions. His eyes were calm as if they were just having a small exchange of words at the monastery.

"I was just curious. I wanted to see if you have the quality to be a good ruler for this Alliance and I wasn´t mistaken. My father has his own ambitions, but he won´t be risking losing his heir. At his age it would be unlikely that he gets any more children, and losing his bloodline for a potential gain would be insane to him. Keeping the bloodline is everything to a noble"

"I see, I thought the same as well, your dad might want to rule over this Alliance, but as long as I´m the leader of House Riegan I won´t giving him the keys of the Alliance. Lord Gloucester is too fond of our imperial neighbors"

"However, being a leader comes with great responsibilities. Do you understand the risks of your position right now?"

"I do, I know that I could get killed at any time. We have already detained some plotters, but the masterminds behind those plans are careful enough no avoid getting exposed. However, the borders are a more important matter to me right now. I´m planning to close borders with the Empire. If we continue giving them free access through the great bridge that would put us in problems with the Holy Kingdom and the Church"

"But if you do that you are inviting an invasion from the empire and the empire is the one that is currently advancing the most in the frontline while our troops are scattered around the entire region. Facing them in combat would mean a military suicide in our current situation"

"That´s why I´m planning to bring the troops of the east. Plenty of them are experienced warriors that could put in trouble most of the generals of the empire. With them we could gather an army capable enough of avoiding an invasion from the Empire while we prepare our next step"

Lorenz was looking at him with disbelief, his face losing the composure he had been maintaining until now.

"If you do that, we would be invaded from the east. You know really well what would happen. Almyra cannot be trusted"

"I happen to have some good relations with people there. I have already discussed this matter with Holst and I have convinced him"

"Convincing Holst, the hero of the Alliance? What kind of deal have you achieved?"

"I will have the pleasure to tell you about it soon, but I can show all my tricks in just one row, don´t you think? By the way, have you heard any news from Leonie or Lysithea? It´s been a while since the last time I´ve seen them"

"Not at all, but if they had been killed, we would have known by now, at least in the case of Lysithea"

"I see" he simply answered before looking at one of the windows. Night is about to come; you should take some rest. As a guest is my duty to look after you"

"I don´t mind being a guest if you are competent enough on the matters ahead. It would be a disappointment if I had to fix the problems you left unresolved in life"

"Don´t worry, Lorenz. I´m planning on living a good and long life after all of this comes to an end", he smiled back as he saw him leaving the room.

"I don´t think that the imperial princess is going to like my decision, but I can´t just give up" he thought as he started writing a letter. If kingdom and empire fought against each other they could be weak enough for them to take advantage of the situation. It was a risky bet, but there wasn´t any more options. Between choosing to leave to never return and trying to chase his dream he was unwilling to sacrifice his own dreams for a better future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 決意 is determination. I think I might start to put the tittles of the chapters in Japanese as well because it helps me to take a better look to some things.


	73. Ice of despair and hope of love 絶望の氷と希望の愛

"Cold" It was the only thing he could thought of as he opened his eyes once again. The world he could see was covered in snow, a blizzard falling upon him. He had lost the count of how many times he had opened his eyes before feeling the pain that was piercing through his very own soul.

"So, you are still refusing to disappear from this realm"

"I can´t just give up on everything I´ve been fighting until now. No matter how many times I have to die, I will stand up until I break free from this nightmare" he said as he pointed with his sword towards Rhea. Around him there were the corpses of the many times he had died by fighting against her.

"You think that you are brave, but your soul is starting to crack, I can feel it. In this realm my power is at its apex while yours is starting to fade away. I can control everything that happens in this reality. This is my definitive gift to you, the proof of the love I placed upon you. You are the only one that will experience the extent of it until you finally fade away from this reality"

"I don´t need any of you anymore and you are waiting in vain, I will get free from this..." he said as he charged at her with his own sword while she was standing still. He was about to hit her when in the split of a second her sword parried the attack as a deep cold entered his body. When he looked at his left hand, he could see how it was starting to fall apart.

"I must admit that your endurance is something I respect, but this world is of my creation. Your efforts are fruitless. As they have always been"

"Curse you!" he shouted as he prepared a fire spell but it was too late as he fell to the ground. He was trying to get up again when he was pierced by a thousand ice spears, the ground starting to turn red around him.

"In the end you will break and your soul will be mine for the rest of eternity" a voice whispered to him in the ear before the world turned black once again.

…..

"I was killed…again" he thought as he sank deeper in his own consciousness. Before him he could see everything, he had been through, every single failed attempt to overcome the cursed reality where he was, but it had not purpose. A part of him was exhausted, tempted to give up since every single attempt was taking more parts of his inner self. No one would really blame him for resting after the endless deaths and failures he had to been through in this cursed world.

Giving up would be the most logical answer…

And because of it he needed to keep fighting, it was the only thing he had left, his determination to fight no matter the challenge.

When he opened his eyes, everything was covered by snow, a landscape he had grown weary of.

"You truly are a fool for returning here" Rhea said as she cleaned her sword from the blood of his own body a few meters away from him. "Can I ask you why are you clinging to your existence like that?"

"As long as I have control over my decisions, I can´t just give up, I need to keep going, for everyone, I know they are waiting for me"

"Those feelings are something I am greatly aware of, but your hope is a delusion. I won the war; the armies of the Empire were crushed by the Church and you are the only thing left of that pathetic attempt to destroy me…If you really wish to meet them once again…you should rest for the eternity"

"You lie!"

"I will destroy that resolution of yours, no matter what you try to do, your existence will end by my hand"

…

"How is him?"

"You already know the answer to this. No matter what I tried to do, those crystals in his body won´t disappear" she said as she observed the body next to him. Byleth´s skin was pale, but he was still breathing, yet that would be something difficult to believe when most part of his body was pierced by white crystals of pure ice. "These crystals contain a power that overcomes all of us, it is a curse that we can do nothing about. The answer to that problem hasn´t changed in all these years, Balthus"

"No matter how many times you tell me I can´t avoid feeling useless. If I were stronger, I might be able to destroy those things…"

"And being killed in the process? Not even an expert wizard would be able to scratch the surface of this powerful spell. This has the signature of Seiros. We can do nothing for him, just wait"

"Damnit! Woke up soon, you idiot!"

"Balthus, are you just giving up? You are the only idiot here if you are thinking he hasn´t been fighting until now. Besides, do you really think he would want to leave us alone? He is our friend, of course he will come back at us" Yuri said, his eyes filled with determination.

"Balthus, are you crying?"

"Not at all, it´s just that there is too much dust here. You are right, Yuri, thanks for reminding me"

…..

It was snowing outside, but he couldn´t avoid feeling even more cold coming from the room before him.

"Lady Rhea, I come here to report you about the situation at the frontline" Rhea was sitting on a throne of light silver colors, her gaze focused on a mirror next to her, but she smiled as she looked at him.

"I hope that you have come with good news, Seteth"

"The frontline has stabilized and the main path towards the heart of the Holy Kingdom has been blocked. The continuous storms that had been falling upon the enemy lines had taken its fair death toll and our forces are preparing the long-awaited plan to retake the monastery"

"I see, has the Emperor finally found her demise?"

"I fear she has avoided another assassination attempt, but our agents were able to escape. Besides, their intents to sabotage our operations have ended in another failure. However, I recommend to proceed with caution, the Adrestian Empire has many resources we lack and their armies have been keeping the western part of the Holy Kingdom"

"I see, if she doesn´t die by them I will have to do it myself when I finish with him"

"We haven´t received any reports about him, I suspect he is de…"

"You are wrong, Seteth, he is still alive" she said as she showed to him the mirror she had been watching until now. When he looked upon it, he froze in horror.

"Rhea, what have you done? This magic is a violation of every rule our…"

"I am being merciful, he just needs to surrender his existence to me and then he will be released from every pain he has been experiencing, but the fool is raising once and once again. He doesn´t seem to understand the limits of his own existence"

He could see how many of them had fallen yet he continued to fight, it was something he couldn´t avoid to respect.

….

"This will be the one!" he thought as he avoided an attack aimed at him while he cut her arm off. He was about to finish her off, when he was stabbed from behind.

"An interesting movement, but doomed to fail, nevertheless" whispered a voice behind him. When he looked behind, he could only see two emerald eyes before he felt a sharp pain in his throat, he was being beheaded.

"There is no opportunity for you to defeat me, you would be wise to surrender to me once and for all. Give me everything you have and your painful existence will come to an end" he could hear a voice say as he was engulfed in darkness.

The pain was menacing to overwhelm him, he tried to move his hands, but they didn´t obey him. He was sinking deeper and deeper in the dark.

"I need… I need to…"

He then felt a pair of hands embracing him from behind, his body shivering due to it.

"I will have everything you have and you can´t do anything to avoid it" whispered a woman´s voice as the hands started to enter his flesh, they were slowly approaching his heart.

"You are mine…"

He could only feel cold, had the world turned into ice, his hope starting to shatter. The hands were already on his heart, its grip growing stronger.

"Enough of this madness!" shouted a familiar voice, a spear of green light piercing through him, and then he was released from the freezing grip.

"Take my hand!" shouted the voice as he felt warm extending through his body, before the world around him grew brighter.

"You were saved by the skin of my teeth" Sothis said as she caught her breath next to him.

"You saved me…" he said, he wanted to hug her, but he was feeling too weak.

"You aren´t saved yet, I´ve been trying to contact you for a long while, but my daughter has been too fixated on you, gosh, where did she learn such manners" Sothis sighed, before looking at him. "Listen to me closely, you are being cursed. This reality built around us is a world created by my daughter to torture you until crushing your soul…I suspect she is trying to get rid of your existence to rewrite your personality to her own liking. The only way to destroy the curse is to defeat her in this world"

"I´ve been trying it all this time, but I have only failed"

"Well, that´s why I´m here don´t you think?" Sothis said before looking worriedly at their surroundings, cracks were starting to appear in the small world Sothis had created within Rhea´s illusion. "This is a world of her own doing, but that doesn´t mean that she is playing fairly, look at this" she said as familiar glyphs started to appear before him. "She is anticipating everything you do against her because she nullified your divine pulse"

"My divine pulse…nullified?"

"More than nullified she is distorting its function. She is forcing you to return over and over again to face her until your soul gets crushed by despair in an endless cycle of suffering"

"Can you lift up such spell?"

"I´m afraid I can´t, her mark is too deep in your soul already. No matter what you do, if you try to use the divine pulse you will be trapped again in this nightmare"

"In that case, what I can do? Her grip is already too strong on me"

"Why are you giving up already? She thinks of you as a tool she can use to her own liking, but you have showed to me that you are more than that. You have been able to overcome many trials and this one won´t be the last one you will face in your life. You need to have more faith in yourself. Your divinity has been marked by her, but your humanity had always been free, use it. Never forget you aren´t the Sword of the Creator, you are just a man with a good heart" Sothis urged him as the world around them started to crumble.

"Sothis, thank you for everything…you have just given me what I needed the most…hope"

"You silly, if it weren´t by me you would be clueless in this world. Byleth, even if she is my daughter…teach her a lesson, I didn´t raise my children to do such terrible things"

"Thanks for everything Sothis, if it weren´t by you I would have disappeared by now" he nodded as he jumped to his judgment.

…

"So, you are raising once again. I thought you were finally able to understand, but it seems that you aren´t a reasonable being. How many times do I have to tell you? Your efforts will mean nothing, in the end you will be mine for the rest of eternity"

"I refuse to accept such destiny, no matter how many times I have to suffer I will continue fighting for my dreams"

"For your dreams…as I expected the words of a madman. In this world there aren´t any dreams just nightmares and shattered illusions. Can´t you see how many times you have died by now?" Rhea said as she observed all the corpses left behind their battles.

"No matter what you do, you are powerless. I created you and, in this world, I am at my apex. A feeble being like you should beg for mercy instead of continuing this farce" Rhea said as she mercilessly smashed him to the ground. He couldn´t about spitting blood, but even in that state he needed to continue.

"I…won´t…give up. Everyone…is waiting…for me"

"You shouldn´t be worrying about the wellbeing of others, can´t you see? Your soul is the one that is getting shattered now. How can you save anyone, when you can´t save yourself of your punishment?"

"You could never understand, even if it means my own demise…I need to protect them!" he said as he released a fireball against her, but it was cut in half by her. She then throwed at him an ice javelin that pierced through his stomach.

"If you are still breathing that only means that the power of our creator is flowing through your traitorous veins" Rhea was before him, her sword filled with a cerulean light. "In the end, you will be following the path I have created for you, your resistance is in vain"

"Even if the crest of flames is inside me, that doesn´t mean that everything I´ve done, everything I will ever do is a consequence of its existence" he said as he started to pull the spear out of his stomach.

"You are a fool if you refuse to admit the magnificence of the powers granted to you. The Sword you wield is a clear example of that" Rhea said as she pointed to the Sword of the Creator with her own.

When he looked at it, he remembered the words he had just heard before.

"Never forget you aren´t the Sword of the Creator, you are just a man with a good heart"

"Rhea…I´m sorry for you, but my death won´t bring Sothis back, not like this" he said as the sword of the Creator started to glow with an incandescent light. And then it shattered, green sparks flowing around them.

"What…did you just break the sword?" A shocked Rhea asked.

"I will never be Sothis. I will face you with everything I can do…as a human"

"You are a fool if you think that you can overcome me like this! You were just a demon in the end…the Ashen Demon…a merciless murderer" Rhea roared as ice creatures started to surround her, all of them adopting her form.

"Not anymore…I´m just Byleth Eisner" he said as he prepared to withstand the incoming attack.

…

"What is going on? The crystals are starting to glow, we must…"

"Don´t approach, it could be dangerous!"

"But if we don´t help him, he might…"

"Is your faith in the Professor so weak, Balthus? He is trying to fight the curse off. He has been fighting against it all these years, the only thing that we can do is ease a bit his pain as he continues his fight" Hapi said as her hands grew brighter.

"Hapi is right, we need to give him strength" Constance said as she joined hands with Hapi and Yuri.

"Professor, better you win what you are fighting" Balthus muttered as he joined them.

…..

"Curse you, monster! Do you really think that you can get rid of my curse? No matter what you do I will make sure to destroy you!" Rhea said as she put herself before the mirror, ancient glyph starting appear on its surface.

"Rhea…" Seteth muttered behind her as he observed through the window a familiar man fighting against what appeared to be an army of Rheas.

…

"Why do you continue to fight? Why are you willing to die for a future without hope?"

"I can´t just give up on them. All of them…they have their own dreams…they are willing to change this world for the better. How could I refuse to help the people I love?" he said as he destroyed one of the clones before avoiding another attack.

"You are a fool!"

"I am, I´m not denying it. I´m a fool… a fool that thinks that can change this world with his own actions…a fool that is willing to do anything for the wellbeing of his friends…a fool that has discovered that he can feel pain, loneliness…and love" he said as he charged his body with his own aura, his body eradiating a blue light.

"A blue aura, coming from your soul…you aren´t using the force of our creator…then what are you using against me?"

"I told you…I will face with everything I can do. I might be a human, I might be broken easily by the power of the gods or ancient sorceries, but as long as I keep breathing, I will stand up again…I won´t give up on hope…never!" He shouted as he charged towards her. They tried to create a magic barrier, but it was too late as he released the power of his own soul upon them. The explosion shattered the ground, blue flames scattered around as the ice copies of Rhea started to fade away.

…

"The ice…it´s starting to crack!"

"Only a bit more…until then we have to remain by his side"

"Come on, Professor, you can do it, return to this world" Yuri said as he released his own healing spells on him.

…

"Do you really think that you can defeat me like this?" Rhea said as she tried to catch her breath. "If I die, you will do as well. Your fate is linked to my own to the end of times! Don´t you understand?" Rhea roared as she started to turn into the Immaculate one. "Our souls will be one to the end of existence, no matter where you go, no matter what you do, no matter what you decide to protect or love…everything you will ever experience will be mine"

"Even in that case I will keep walking forward, I won´t let everything I have get robbed from me!" He said as he lifted his silver sword, blue flames starting to appear on its surface. "Rhea, your end comes now, the curse will be broken now"

"Die!" Rhea said with a roar as she attacked, but her attack was cut in half by his own.

"Impossible, how could you?"

"Don´t you understand? They are waiting for me. As long as I have hope I won´t be affected by your curse. Now it is time to end this" he said as he cut through her flesh, blue flames following his cuts. Rhea tried to stand up again, but her legs crumbled as the ice around her started to shatter. The Immaculate One was no more, instead of it an injured Rhea appeared before him.

The ice was starting to disappear, small flowers starting to appear all around, but he could feel that the fight wasn´t over yet.

"Why clinging on such feelings…don´t you understand…if it weren´t by me you would be dead…your mere existence is due to me…I took care of you when no one else couldn´t help…not even your father"

"And I won´t forget that Rhea…but in the end we have to follow our own paths…I didn´t want you as an enemy…that´s the only truth I can tell you"

"Remember my words…everything you have will disappear…no matter what you do my mark on you won´t disappear, it´s already deep within you" Rhea said as she stood up again, a deep mist coming from within her.

"Countless times I´ve suffered here…countless timed I´ve failed" he said as he prepared his guard "But even the longest winter comes to an end. And with the end of winter the promised spring comes bringing new life to the world" he said as she was quickly approaching him with the fury of a blizzard.

He could feel the cold, but this time he was prepared, his blade stopping the cold in front of him.

….

"Lady Rhea, you are bleeding!" Seteth said alarmed as he looked at the wound in her stomach. A silver sword was coming through the mirror Rhea was manipulating until now, but she didn´t appear to feel the pain as she was engulfed by pure ire.

"Die!"

…..

"From where have appeared these ice hands?" Balthus said as he shattered one.

"More than hands I would say they are claws" Yuri continued as he shattered another pair.

The room where they were had frozen unnatural hands trying to approach the body of their Professor, but that was something they couldn´t allow to happen.

"If something like this is happening it means that the spell is on its limit. We have to continue pressing forward"

….

"Lady Rhea!" he shouted as he came to her aid. Apart from the wound in her stomach, she didn´t appear to have any other visible wounds, but she looked very agitated.

"How could he…how could he" Rhea muttered before standing on her own. "Seteth"

"Yes, Lady Rhea?"

"Prepare the troops, we will need them very soon. The war has weakened our enemies, we have to take advantage of this situation while it lasts"

"What about your wounds?"

"My wounds are none of your concern, this is nothing from what I have already suffered. Now leave this place"

"Understood, forgive my intromission" he said, although he was worried about what had just happen in the room. He had many questions, but he knew that the answers to those were unreachable to him.

"You might have broken free from my reality, but that means nothing as long as you have my mark in your soul…your existence will end up being mine…no matter what you do…no matter what, your path will end with you by my side…for the rest of eternity"

….

He felt an intense pain coming from his chest, his lungs trying to get some fresh air, but it was like he was trapped by something. Was he still trapped in that alternate reality?

"Balthus, you brute, you are going to kill him at this rate!" said a familiar voice next to him.

"Oh, sorry, Hapi I was just too happy" Balthus said as he relaxed his embrace from him. "It´s been a while Professor. I didn´t know you take such long naps. You had all these little guys worried about you"

"Don´t act so cocky, you were about to cry like a baby just a moment ago"

"Balthus?"

"Who else would be so strong like me? I carried you over to this place. Just with these muscles of mine"

"Muscles without a brain will be of little help" Yuri interrupted him as he looked at him. "You got all of us really worried. You were in a very poor state when we found you, pierced by multiple crystals yet you were somehow alive"

"Me and Hapi have been checking all these years your health. The magic that was employed on you is something I have never seen, not even something I have read about. I beg of you to tell us what has happened to you"

"I´m glad to see all of you here, I thought I had lost everyone, but looking at a familiar face is a relieve" he said with a weak smile as he tried to stand up, but he couldn´t, yet something they had said had been intriguing him.

"You shouldn´t push yourself too hard. You had just been released from a spell, or at least most of it. After all the time you have been unconscious you should respect your own limits a bit more"

"How much time have I been unconscious?"

The Ashen wolves looked at each other, before looking at him.

"Professor, you have been unconscious for five years. We will need some time to explain everything that has happened until now. I´m sure you have a lot to ask about, but first you should recover some energy, you look completely exhausted"

He was about to complain, but they were right as he felt an extreme tiredness taking hold of his body.

"Five years" he thought as everything grew darker. "What has happened to this world while I was unconscious and more important…are they…is she ok?" he wondered as everything disappeared from his sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 絶望の氷と希望の愛 (zetsubounokooritokibounoai)
> 
> 愛is the most generous kind of love, the one that embraces us all when we are surrounded with those that have a deep meaning to our existence. It is the one that mark us all one way or another.
> 
> Next chapter will be the last of this year, I expect to publish again January the 8th.


	74. A spiral of death 死の渦状

**11/22 Red wolf moon**

"So, I have been asleep during five years" Looking at his body he could still feel a sharp pain, but apart from that he was surprisingly fine.

"Technically almost five, but yes it has been quite a long time. We dragged you away from the river, but you were already unconscious" Yuri said

"We are currently in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the Alliance. Our plan was to bring you to Balthus´s home and wait for the end of the conflict, but the movement of the Alliance´s troops was faster than expected" Hapi continued. "The borders of the Alliance are patrolled and closed and we are in the middle of this forest. However, before we take a decision about what to do from now own, I want to make sure that you are alright. Can you follow me?"

"Ok" he answered as he stood up by his own feet.

He was welcomed by a chilly air, but he had grown used to it. The area where they were was covered by trees and he didn´t sense any humans or monsters nearby.

"Don´t worry, this place is safe. Constance and I made sure to place spells to dissuade unwanted visitors"

"I see, that´s good to know. Do you know any news about the war?"

"There is no clear winner for now. All I know is that to the west battles are still taking place, but the east has been silent as of lately. I think this place will be good to check it" Hapi muttered as she checked her surroundings before looking at him.

"Byleth, please try to release a spell"

He closed his eyes and focused on the area in front of him as he prepared to release a basic fire spell, but what come from his hand wasn´t a typical fireball but a blue one, the area of impact freezing and shattering in the split of a second.

"I see, then that confirms that something has changed within you. That´s one of the side effects that the curse had on you. It is really interesting since the elemental spells that most people learn are based on fire or wind and in some cases the control of water or even thunder. Ice is an unstable kind of magic that usually lacks the strength to overcome fire-based spells, but yours is a bit different to the usual spells I´ve seen in my life" Hapi said as she observed the area of impact. "It´s difficult to explain, but the source of your power is strangely unnatural. It is something I can´t identify as white magic, dark magic or even black magic…it is something more ancient, yet unnatural"

"Then I shouldn´t employ such spells until we know up to what extent my body has been affected"

"That would be the most advisable thing to do…It is enough with me being cursed. If something happened to you because of freeing yourself of that spell everything would be a mess" Hapi said as she stood up again, preparing to leave. "Now we should return with the others, we must discuss what to do from now on"

Following her, he couldn´t avoid wondering about the wellbeing of his students. If 5 years had passed by now some of them could be…no, it wasn´t the time to think about something like that. He needed to reunite with them as soon as possible, but he needed to be cautious about the next steps to take, he thought as he started to check his sword hilt.

"Hapi, where is the sword?" he asked, alarmed.

"That was something we wanted to discuss with you" Yuri said at the entrance of the gate, with him he could see Constance and Balthus, although Constance was avoiding the sunlight.

"We didn´t find it with you, perhaps it ended in the bottom of the river and it is already in the deeps of the sea" Balthus suggested.

"No, it can´t be. I can feel that it hasn´t been lost"

"Can you feel it? That is another unnatural skill, I dare to say"

"Yes, it is difficult to explain, but I sense that it is still around…in some other place…Do you have any idea which place could it be?"

"Well, a group of bandits has been causing havoc in these lands for quite a while. The Alliance sent some battalions but they were massacred. Since then, the area is avoided and most merchants prefer crossing the forested areas even under the risk of attacks from giant wolves" Yuri said.

"Where are they?"

"To the west of the lands of Gloucester. They have taken control of an abandoned fortification nearby and they are using the place to attack the surrounding areas. I´ve heard that they have some deals with one of the minor nobles of the area"

"Then that will be the place where we have to go first"

"Wait a second, you haven´t completely recovered yet and we don´t even know if the sword is there. Don´t you think that we should…?"

"Come on, Hapi. We can´t stay here until the war ends, if the Professor says that the sword is there, I believe him"

"It´s not a matter of believing on his words" Constance sighed. "But looking at both of you, I already know that you have already made up your mind. At least let me take a parasol with me. I must admit that the shining sun above us affects me badly"

"I would have preferred something more relaxed to do, but I already know that you don´t like to lose your time" Yuri laughed. "We´ll accompany you and in the meantime we´ll continue to explain to you what has been happening during all these years. I hope you can endure with the talk"

"I will"

"You barely talk at all, Professor. More than a conversation it´s going to be a succession of monologues. That makes me…"

"Don´t do that here!"

….

These last days have been getting even colder, but he felt nothing as he patrolled the walls of the monastery. Time had passed since its fall, but he could see the marks of the battle on its walls.

"I killed many, but no one was able to give me the death I wish" He had been hoping to end his existence for quite some time, but every time he entered the battlefield his senses were numbed, the smell of blood turning him into the monster he had been for many years. The only one who could possibly bring an end to his days was that man…but he had disappeared. The disappointment he had felt since then was unbearable. No matter how many people he killed, no matter how many skulls crushed in his path, no one was brave enough to face him, they were scared of the monster they had in front of them, of the…

"Emile, what are you doing in the middle of the walls? You are going to catch a cold, please take this"

"Mercedes…why have you come here?"

"I´m your sister, it is only natural that I worry about your well-being Emile"

"Stop calling me by that name…now I´m just…"

"No matter how much time passes you will always be Emile to me" Mercedes said with a wide smile. During these years she had cut her long hair, but her face remained the same. Her personality had always been gentle, always worrying about the wellbeing of others, but that had no purpose on him. He was a monster that deserved nothing.

"Do as you please then, but try not to disturb me. I will be leaving in a short while"

"You were nicer when you were younger" Mercedes sighed. "Don´t you understand how much time I´ve been searching for you? Since that day when you left us"

"I won´t be talking with you about that matter"

"I hope that one day you talk about it with me as we used to do in the past. Don´t you remember the talks we had when we were younger? Your smile…"

"The boy you are talking about is dead, I killed him. I have killed many that deserved it and many that not, but I killed them all nevertheless. No matter what you say, that won´t ever change. I´m a monster, a monster that will continue to kill until someday gets killed. Kill or be killed that´s the only thing that matters on this world. The past will never come back, only the present matters" he said, although he felt his heart heavy as he said those words. "I will be leaving them; you should leave as well. The wind is freezing up here and even the most used to it could fall ill" he said as he left her behind, his eyes hidden under the helmet he used to hide his remorse and shame from the rest of the world.

….

**11/24**

"Today is unusually cold"

"Do you really think so? We are in the north in the middle of a war. A bit of snow won´t be changing the fact that we must stay here to protect the border"

It has been weeks since he had arrived there, but it felt as if years had passed since his arrival. As a young man of the kingdom, he had been battling in countless battles. He still had many things to learn, but even now his heart was filled with doubts. Somewhere in another place some of his classmates might be wondering about the same thing. He wanted to bring justice to those who had brought doom to his former family, but at the same time he didn´t want to betray the trust of his friends. No matter what he did someone would get hurt in the process.

"I´m still too weak" he thought filled with remorse. "How can I continue going forward when I don´t even know what I should do?"

"Boy, are you wondering about something?"

"Eh, no sir!"

"I told you I´m not a knight, just an official. If I were a knight, I would be wearing a shiny armor and ladies would fall in love with me…but my armor is rusty and the only lady that obeys me is this sword" the man laughed as he patted his back.

"Sorry, I forgot about it"

"No worries…although now even the knights don´t have the time to enjoy the pleasures of life. This war is bringing all of us to the limit. That imperial scum wants to kill us all, don´t forget that"

"Yes…"

Some of his companions had already been ascended to generals, but he had chosen to follow his own path. He had been fighting in different places, keeping his identity hidden just in case someone would be suspicious about him. Everything for the sake of knowing the truth.

He was about to say something, when he sensed something off in the distance.

"To the ground!" he shouted as a spell impacted with the wall, debris falling on them.

"They are attacking us!"

"Curse them, don´t let them take the fort, protect the area with your lives!" the commander roared as he used his sword to slay one of the attackers. It was a masked man, but there were too many of them.

The archers were shooting at the enemy, but the blizzard was making it difficult to locate their enemies. One of the mysterious attackers was approaching from behind one of his comrades. Without thinking it twice he attacked him with his sword, blood staining the snow.

"Thank you…" But there were already more enemies approaching them. They were still holding the watchtowers and the main entrance to the fort, if they could continue like this, they could be able to survive the attack.

"But who they were? If they were Imperial troops, why didn´t they have a visible sigil on their clothes?"

He was wondering about it, when a roar froze his blood. Then an explosion happened, shattering the gates at the main entrance.

"Don´t let them in!" the commander shouted, but it was too late. A giant creature effortlessly destroyed the gates, stone and wood pillars falling on some of the troops. The archers were shooting arrows at their new enemy, but in an instant, they were engulfed in fire. Looking at the beast before him, he knew that there was nothing they could do to defeat it. He was trembling, so focused on the monster before him, he didn´t notice the enemy approaching him.

"You idiot! Pay attention to your surroundings!" The commander shouted as he cut the head off of his attacker. "This battle is not over yet, prepare the ballistae, we´ll send that abomination back to hell! You, prepare the artillery!"

"Yes, commander!"

He ran toward one of the watchtowers, as he arrived to the top, he could see that more monsters were starting to appear, but the commander had ordered him to take care of the ballistae.

More soldiers were already at the top, holding a giant projectile. He did the same with the one to his right. With the aid of one of the other soldiers he aimed at one of the beasts.

"Fire!"

The projectile pierced through the neck of one of the beasts which roared in anguish as it fell to the ground. Other projectiles were falling upon their enemy, killing or heavily injuring the creatures at the gates of the fort.

Another beast had already appeared at the gates, it was smaller, but he could feel an intimidating aura coming from it.

"Kill it!"

His eyes were focused on the beast as he released the giant projectiles, the wind howling like a madman. The giant arrows were almost on it, when it raised its shield, stopping the attack.

"How the hell…" muttered one of the soldiers. The creature was looking at them, its crimson eyes shining in the middle of the darkness. He could see a gloaming light raising from its body.

"Prepare another one! Kill that bastard" roared a voice, but it was too late. He felt an intense pain as the tower collapsed, hit by an explosion. He could only hear the cries of other men as he fell to the ground and everything was covered in darkness.

…..

"Hey, you…can you hear me?"

He felt as if his body had just been beaten up, his head about to explode, but he was still breathing.

"What happened?" he asked, around him there were some other soldiers. All of them appeared to be exhausted, some of them injured, but alive.

"They attacked us, we were holding our ground, but them those things appeared. We killed many but they kept appearing, accompanied by those men. Our commander at least sent that bastard to hell before it died"

"Where are we?"

"We are still at the fort; we are the last ones. The battle hasn´t ended yet, but at least there aren´t any of those monsters around anymore. However, we´ve lost, we need to inform the rest of the troops of this attack. We are just thirty, some of us are injured, but if we could break through the enemy lines and head north, we might be able to arrive to the other fort before dawn. This cursed blizzard must have aided them to get to this place without being noticed. "Can you stand by your own and hold a sword?"

"Yes, sir"

"In that case prepare to use it, we need to arrive to the other fort. If at least one of us survives the rest of the troops will be able to prepare a counterattack. We won´t let those cowards take advantage of the suffering of our people" The soldier in front of him said as he prepared his battle axe.

"Let´s kill those bastards!" he shouted as he kicked the door, smashing his axe in the head of one of their enemies. They were received by different spells, but they didn´t stop as they killed one enemy after another. They were approaching the main gates, red snow surrounding the bodies of the fallen. Adjusting his sword belt, he sliced the head off of one of his attackers as they walked through the main entrance, a freezing wind coming from the west.

"Curse this weather, they must be using magic or something" muttered one of the soldiers as they continued running away. A few minutes later, the only thing they could hear was the wind and the sound of their own footsteps. They couldn´t see the fortress behind them, but they knew they were heading in the correct direction.

"In all my years I didn´t expect to face something like that. Those creatures…it is something I´ve never seen. If we don´t inform the main armies, a slaughter of innocents will take place" The leader of their group said as they went deeper into the forested area. The wind was gentler there, but everyone was alert. The enemy was still nearby and they could have prepared an ambush against them. Even the slightest of sounds could be a threat.

However, as he walked deeper into the forest, something was still bothering him. "All of them were wearing masks, we couldn´t see their faces…are they demons?" he wondered while he followed them, when he was pushed to the ground.

"Watch out!" shouted a voice as one of the trees exploded, branches engulfed in flames falling to the ground.

"Curse it!" he shouted as he stopped a dagger with his sword. More masked figures appearing around in the forest.

"They are trying to block us all, continue marching forward no matter the cost!" roared their new leader as he avoided another attack.

"RUN NOW, RETREAT!"

The silent forest had turned into a masquerade of blood and death, the cries of some of his companions piercing his ears as he continued running. He could feel their presence a few meters away from him, he wanted to avenge his fallen brothers, yet they were too many.

"We will be crossing through the frozen lake! Do we still have a magic caster to spare?"

"I know some basic spells, sir" a man to his right said.

"Then melt the ice behind us as soon as we start crossing the lake!" their leader shouted as he avoided a dagger aimed at his head.

Suddenly the sea of trees came to an end, a ghastly surface extending in front of them.

"The lake, don´t hesitate, keep running!"

The surface was slippery, but their shoes were prepared to face such conditions, such was the nature of the north. The remaining men were already in the middle of the lake when the first attackers started to appear behind them"

"Fire now!"

A medium size fireball impacted in the surface of the ice, the fire and the explosion shattering the area as the first enemy troops started to appear, some of them tried to erect a magic barrier, but they sank in silence to their deaths.

"They don´t even cry as they die, they must be demons" muttered a soldier he didn´t know as they approached the other side of the lake.

…..

"The fort is on sight, we did it…we must"

"Sir, the fort is on fire!"

It was true. Flames were raising from the watchtowers and the main gates had been destroyed, but the worst thing were the bodies.

Butchered, burned, gutted, quartered. Death´s stench was filling his head, making him fall on his knees. Someone next to him was already throwing up and he couldn´t really blame him, he couldn´t believe what was in front of him.

"What has happened? Who could do something like this?"

"Sir, there are only bodies of our men, but none of the enemy. How could that happen?"

"That´s something easy to answer, I did it alone" said a voice from the gates of the destroyed fort.

It was a woman, her voluptuous body contrasting with the look on her face. She wasn´t wearing any armor, a pair of daggers on her hands. He didn´t know why, but he couldn´t avoid shivering at the look of it.

"You, bastard…did you really kill all these good men? Why...Why someone would commit such slaughter?"

"Isn´t it obvious, I just wanted to entertain myself and the kingdom knights proved to be worth of their name. A pity that they didn´t last for too long. I just wanted to play a bit more" she laughed. "I was about to leave this place, but what do we have here? A group of proudful warriors willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of vengeance, how lovely…that must really be love, isn´t it?" The woman giggled.

"You whore…die!" shouted a soldier as he charged at her with his lance. His lance was about to hit her, when she appeared behind him.

"You should now your own limits, my dear…but you are so warm…thank you for your kindness" the woman said as she pulled her hand out of the man´s back. Opening her hand, she revealed to them a still beating heart.

"I hope you can provide to me more entertainment than this poor soul"

"Defensive positions now! Keep calm, focus on her movements"

"A leader must protect his fellow soldiers even at a times of certain death. I will make sure to kill of them before I kill you…to allow you taste true despair" The woman said before slowly starting to approach them, her hands starting to glow.

And then they were engulfed in a dark mist, he couldn´t even see the hand in front of him, but he could hear them, the screams of people dying in despair.

"Don´t stand like that, you idiot!" roared a voice as he was pushed to the ground, but the snow wasn´t cold, it was strangely warm, a sticky thing in his hand. He then realized he was touching the guts of one of his fellow companions. The mist had disappeared and he could see everything that had happened, the slaughter that had just happened around him, limbs without an owner scatter all around, the smell of death filling his head, making him unable to think about anything else.

A few meters away from him he could see his commander, heavily injured, but still breathing.

"Saving in the last second one of the young ones. Sacrificing yourself like that is so lovely! I wished I could be loved like that by my children"

"You are a witch, a demon with human skin" The injured man said as he spat on her, but that only made her laugh.

"You are so interesting. Even in your last moments you are willing to defy me…a powerless bug like you can´t even lick the tip of my shoes…or perhaps you could" she said as she crushed his skull with her own feet.

"No!" he shouted as he helped himself with his sword.

"Are you going to attack me to avenge your friends…how lovely of you…but do you really think that you can defeat me?" the woman laughed. "Why not accepting defeat, I could forgive your life…if you ask for mercy and lick my shoes…they got so dirty after crushing his skull…"

"I won´t abandon them, I will get rid of you!" he shouted as he prepared his sword to attack the devil in front of him.

"Pride…your pride makes you so dumb and lovely" she smiled as the sword shattered before touching her skin, a light explosion sending him to the ground.

"Kill me already!"

"Why though? Killing someone that is asking for it, won´t entertain me…and you are so young…even if I killed all these men I´m still a lady in the bottom of my heart. Besides, green eyes with innocent faces are my type" she said as she started to approach him.

There was no option then, even if he had to die without honor… he thought as he bit his tongue, but the moment blood started to fill his mouth it suddenly disappeared.

"Oh, so stubborn…" she giggled. "I have changed my plans…I´ll be keeping you as my new toy" the woman said as she cherished his hair, making him shiver. He couldn´t avoid crying, realizing that that was a fate worse than death, the world around him covered in darkness.

…

"I see that you were having fun, Cornelia. I think I told you to be more discreet. The imperial army kills its enemies it doesn´t slaughter them like animals"

"I must admit that I got too excited, but being isolated for too long is so boring." Cornelia smiled as she yawned.

"Don´t lie, you are rooming freely across the land since your captors are already under your spell. Anyway, this should be enough to accelerate the events. News of this slaughter will extend through the entire Kingdom and a new counterattack will take place. To avenge those who died today"

"I see, so your objective is to make the Kingdom clash again against the Empire. However, this will probably cause rebellions in the territories controlled by the Empire"

"That´s none of my business. Let them clash against each other. Our final enemy is covered by the Kingdom´s cape, but if that disappears that will mark the beginning of the end of this farce. Have you already used the power I have placed upon you?" he asked as he looked at the bracelet, she was keeping in one of her arms.

"Yes, and I must admit that it is amazing. How sweet of you for thinking about me, being able to take every shape must have been a difficult task" she giggled as her form started to change, her height shrieking as her eyes turned purple. "Do I look like our blessed emperor?"

"An exact copy, although your personality is too flamboyant. You should try practicing it, the day I´ll need your new talent will eventually come, until then I advise you to be weary of your own whereabouts"

"You have always been so serious, but the knights and the king are far more boring" she sighed as her form changed again, her chest growing wide as his eyes turned blue. "If I told them to run to their deaths under this disguise all knights would follow me without a doubt. Loyalty is a beautiful thing, don´t you think? If someone was so loyal to me…"

"Enough of your nonsense, don´t try to commit a stupidity. If the archbishop discovers you, your death won´t be a pleasurable thing. You should already return to your place. Even if you have slaved the minds of your guardians, the shield of Faerghus won´t certainly fall for such little trick"

"That man is more worried about doing the right thing than anything else. He has even forgotten his own son. I could hear their last discussion from my room. And since that day no one knows where he could have gone"

"Interesting, although I don´t know how it can be used. I´ll contact you later, until then don´t do anything you could regret. I´ll be merciless"

"You have always been so charming. You haven´t changed a bit in all these years"

"Do you really think so? I think that both of us have changed, we aren´t the ones we used to be, but this is not the time not the place to talk about a past that won´t return. Leave this place"

"Understood, my lord" she bowed before disappearing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas and a happy new year to everyone. Stay healthy and safe. See you next year!


	75. Nothingness　虚無

**11/26 Red wolf moon**

"So, the stories of that attack are true?"

"Yes, Lady Edelgard and I fear that the rumors of such attack had already spread. The lances of the Holy Kingdom are already pointing at us" Hubert said as he took a seat next to her. The room where they were sitting was empty except for the two of them, the torches casting away the cold.

"Then a counterattack will happen at any time and the frontlines had been weakened after the last great battle. If they attack now, we will lose territories we have been fighting for years. Even if we weren´t the ones responsible of that attack we must be prepared to react"

"I appreciate your diligence, but I am afraid that reinforcements will take some time to arrive. The roads to that area are constantly sabotaged. If we could have another way to move our troops alongside our food supplies…"

"That would mean open war with the Alliance, but the idea of obtaining better supplies is tempting. Unfortunately, most troops of the Alliance have relocated to its southern and western borders" She sighed as she looked at the map of Fódlan in front of her. "Are the reports to the east true?"

"I am afraid that Claude seems to be in good terms with our neighbors. No new invasions had been reported, even though the eastern border of the Alliance is practically defenseless. However, there aren´t any new reports of troops coming from the east of Fódlan"

"Hopefully they will remain idle, although I wouldn´t hold my breath for it. We have a clear enemy to the north and the northwest and a dubious pacifist at the east…And we are just in the middle of it"

"Petra has suggested to ask for help in Brigid. Their forces would be certainly helpful in future battles"

"Even if they are brave warriors, Brigid isn´t enough. The Empire has the mightiest army of Fódlan, but now it is dispersed in half the continent. The moment we show our back we´ll be stabbed by one of the other nations. I don´t trust Claude, he is clearly waiting to attack us the moment we focus on our fight with the Church and the Kingdom. Have they reached an agreement with the Alliance to fight against us?"

"No, Lady Edelgard. In the first months of the war, there were some movements from the Holy Kingdom, but the Leicester Alliance has been keeping his borders closed ever since. It doesn´t seem like the Alliance is interested in leaving its apparent neutrality"

"And the Empire loyalists can´t move at all"

"As long as Lorenz remains in the Alliance capital, Lord Gloucester won´t openly mobilize against the Alliance. House Ordelia is in good terms with the Empire, but of its own won´t do anything too risky. We could use mercenary companies from Dagda. As long as we combine them with our troops, we could have a safe last resort line in case that the Alliance decides to move"

"Better than nothing, I guess" she sighed. "But Dagda has already its own problems, if the rumors of internal fights during these years are true. We don´t know what will be the next move of the Alliance, but the only thing that I can say for certain is that the Kingdom will attack us again in a short while. Those creatures don´t want the carnage to stop"

"With great reluctance I must say that there could be another alternative to resolve the problem of a double front in this war"

"Tell me, even if I already suspect what you are going to tell me"

"Lady Edelgard…a marriage proposal could prevent any hostilities raising from the Alliance. If two rulers of this land are engaged, the ambitions of the Kingdom and the Church will be in great peril. Religiosity isn´t as strong in the Alliance as it is in the Holy Kingdom, the Church doesn´t have any power there…and the armies of the Alliance while less experienced than the Holy Kingdom´s, they could be decisive if we decide to advance to the Kingdom capital. It could mean the end of the war in just months"

"Only if Claude decides to accept such proposal" she said while looking at her hand.

"Claude is an ambitious man, he wouldn´t possibly object to such offer"

"He will decline if his objectives differ from us and I suspect that he will place his own conditions. I highly doubt that he will allow our troops to enter his territory without making sure before that he has the upper hand. Such proposal could have been more effective with Dimitri…but now it seems that he just wants my head on a pike. He has never been patient when he gets obsessed with something"

"We could offer generous conditions while we get rid of the most difficult elements of the Alliance, although attempting on the life of the Alliance´s leader so early could mean a great disturbance"

"Hubert, you really surprise me sometimes. You are able to talk about marriage and murder without changing the expression of your face"

"If you wish so, I will try to be more expressive"

"Don´t feel forced to do anything you don´t want to. Anyway, I think that the solution to this problem won´t be through marriage, but on the battlefield" she said as she stood up. There were more reasons for her refusal, but they were too embarrassing to admit them in front of him. Even if he was his most trusted confidant, there were some things he couldn´t just discuss with him. "I think that bringing some mercenaries groups from Dagda could buy us some time while we try to prepare for the upcoming Kingdom attack"

"Understood, Lady Edelgard, consider it done" Hubert said as he bowed. "You should discuss the matter of Brigid with Petra soon, even it is a small land…

"Everything counts in war. I know it, I´ll talk with her about that matter, but before we need to make sure to resolve this problem before us" she said as she stood up. "Please, leave me alone. I need some time to think"

"Understood"

"Claude, what are you really up to?" she wondered in silence. The war against the Church and the Holy Kingdom could be considered straightforward compared to the balance of powers Claude was doing in the Alliance to keep away the pro-empire forces. It was a rival she needed to keep all her focus on, but she couldn´t just ignore the menace coming from the north. But above all she was wondering about the strategy of the forces of Thales. "Doing such reckless attack is a sign that they are up to something. There are many things happening at the same time, ignoring just one of them could mean the demise of us all"

Every death until now was on her, but at least she had been able to keep all of her classmates alive. "My…friends" she corrected herself as she looked to the outside world. They were experiencing the worst winter in years, but even like that she still had the hope…the believe that he was somewhere. "Someone like him couldn´t possibly die so easily. He´ll return I believe in him" she muttered, before focusing on her work again.

"Lady Edelgard is too kind" muttered a voice to the other side of the door. He couldn´t about feeling a bit of an irony that the person that has dropped all her religious believes had regained her faith in someone else.

Like that Hubert left to continue with his tasks. It was his duty as the emperor´s advisor…and perhaps as a friend.

…

He was feeling exhausted after patrolling the surroundings of the monastery in the search of the soldiers that had attacked one of their caravans. The monastery was far behind the frontline, but that didn´t mean that from time-to-time groups of armed soldiers appeared from nowhere. In most cases, they were just bandits, people that didn't have the courage to fight like a true soldier. But sometimes the source of the problem could be deserters.

"Deserters" he thought. Deserters were broken men that they have left their own humanity behind the moment they had decided to run away from the war. No matter where they went, they would be despised by those who knew who they were. Some of them were cowards that were too scared of dying, but others had fought and fought until the war had broken them. Those were the most dangerous. They wouldn´t hesitate to kill even former companions if that meant surviving another day.

If the religion embraced the past and the rulers aimed for the future, the deserter was the present; a present whose only purpose was to survive until they were killed, sometimes by his own former friends.

"War changes us all" he thought as he cherished a scar on his face. His dear sister joked about it, saying that it made him manlier, but it was just the living proof of the luck he had when the northerner sword impacted on his helmet. The north had been the tomb of many of his comrades, many of them worth of being called friends. As a commander, their deaths were a burden he would never forget until his last breath. Losing those you were supposed to protect was a painful experience, yet her sister was willing to enlist herself to take part into the war. As a soldier he should be happy about her devotion to the cause, but as his older brother he had the fear that he might have to bury her with his own hands. "Youth makes us feel immortal. How deluded I was back then" he sighed.

"Five years ago, I wouldn´t believe those words coming from your mouth" said a voice close to him. It was Ladislava. She was wearing her usual armor, her delicate features a delight to the eye, but her eyes were sharper than most blades he had met on the battlefield. He knew that she wasn´t the one to comfort those around her, but having her around was somehow a relieve.

"Ladislava…"

"You were young and inexperienced five years ago, but now you know the true meaning of war. Tell me, how many men have you killed?"

"Too many to count"

"And how many have you lost?"

"Too many to consider myself a good commander"

"You have won the battles you have fought, you shouldn´t belittle yourself. In war people die, it is the responsibility of the survivors to continue fighting. Otherwise, their sacrifice would be in vain. Tell me, what are you afraid of?"

"How could you know?" He asked surprise

"It´s written all over your face. Your future as a spy would be gloomy, relieve yourself that you are a warrior"

"My…sister is eager to join the ranks of the imperial army"

"Wouldn´t that mean a reason to celebrate? Fighting for your motherland is the greatest honor for a soldier"

"I know…but I´m afraid of losing her. She is too reckless in a world where those attributes can lead to a quick death"

"Randolph…you were once as you are describing her, yet you went on the battlefield alongside me. You were willing to fight and die if necessary. Do I need to remind you your vows"?

"No, sir"

"Sir?" Ladislava said, her tone incapable of hiding a bit of surprise. "Being on the battlefield doesn´t make me a man, Randolph. Underestimating me because of being a woman has allowed me to send many men to hell already. They tried to get rid of me quickly and then they met their demise"

"I apologize, sincerely. I´m aware that you aren´t…well, you really are…please continue" he said as he felt like he was dying by the embarrassment.

"Your sister is just following your path. With the little information I know about her I´m sure she admires you. Joining the imperial army is just a natural step she is following. Your desire not to let her join us is just based on egoistical reasons. Will she get hurt? Probably. Will she start to doubt many things she believed until now? Certainly so. You can´t protect her from the world. Even if your intentions are born out of worry about her wellbeing, pain and hesitation will eventually come to her"

"Ladislava…how did you overcome those feelings of despair. If I could know a way to handling them I could probably…"

"The emperor showed me that there are things worth fighting and dying for. Despite her injuries, she had kept walking forward even if every day the burden of dead bodies grew heavier. I was hopeless before she found me, yet the little girl she was showed me the light I had lost long ago. I´ll proudly give my life if that meant the fruition of her dreams. You are worried about your sister. In that case, train her, keep her at your side and teach her everything you know. You are soldier, instruction is natural part of our everyday life"

"I still have many things to learn. I need to be stronger, like you" he said before he bowed before her. "Please train with me, even if it´s just for a short while I would be eternally grateful for your help"

He was afraid of looking at her face so he was keeping his eyes closed. He was expecting her to mock him. After all, she was the elite of the vanguard of the Imperial forces, she had overcome many battles and her troops were among the ones with the least casualties. She surely had many issues that required her attention. He was about to apologize when he felt a warm hand on his shoulder.

"Asking for such favor doesn´t require you to behave like this, we are both warriors and we´ve been already through many trials. I´ll help you in your training" She said, her eyes were firm and sharp, but there was a light smile on her face.

"It wouldn´t be too bad if you smiled more often" he was tempted to say, but her hand was still on his shoulder and he didn´t want to get a beating. "Thank you, Ladislava. I truly appreciate it" he said with a wide smile.

…..

**11/27**

"This forest is really big"

"Of course, it´s big, Balthus. It´s the greatest forest of the Leicester Alliance, but we are just at its outskirts There are stories of monsters in the deepest part of the forest, but luckily enough our objective isn´t there. I´ve also heard rumors of a powerful witch that lives somewhere in the forest, her spells capable of bringing doom to those that dare to trespass the area. I hope we leave undetected; it would be too annoying to face someone like that"

"A witch in the forest? That just sounds like a tale for kids" Balthus laughed.

"If you get killed, I won´t bother burying you"

"Hey, no need to be so dark about it"

"We should arrive when the sun sets. From now on we should be wearier of our surroundings. Hapi, Constance prepare enchantments to hide our presence in case they have magic casters among them" he said as he looked around. Overconfidence could lead to an earlier death.

"Do you really think they are that dangerous?"

"They were able to defeat an army of the Leicester Alliance and they have taken control of an abandoned castle…and they could possibly have a relic. We can´t underestimate them"

…

The night was already on them when they arrived to the area, torches lit in the distance.

"We finally found their place. I can´t believe that a group of bandits had taken control of a place like this"

"An emptied castle has no way to defend itself, the strength of a fortress relies on the men on its wall" Yuri replied to Balthus while they kept hidden in the bushes nearby.

"There are too many of them, we must take control of the sword before something bad happens" he muttered when his eyes caught a glimpse of a golden hilt. The sword of the Creator was being carried by a middle-aged man with green eyes. His face was strangely familiar, he had the feeling he had seen him somewhere. The man was entering the castle through the main gates, the surroundings guarded by multiple men.

"We don´t know how many of them are inside, so we must be careful" he said before his attention was caught by a smaller group of soldiers that were approaching their area. "Prepare for an ambush" he whispered with a quick look at them. Hapi casted a magic aura around them to mitigate the sounds produced in the area while Constance casted magic mist.

The group was already on them, but were unprepared for their attack. Taking advantage of the ambush, they neutered them easily before they could even realize what was going on.

"We´ll be using their armors to get into their den. They are many men roaming the area, they shouldn´t recognize just a patrol in the middle of the night, but be prepared to defend yourselves in case of it been needed"

After they had taken the armors from the patrol, they slowly started to approach the abandoned fortress. The sleeping giant was of a monstrous size but some towers had already collapsed, giving it a ruinous appearance. They were lucky that the guards didn´t stop them, there weren´t any villages or armies nearby so they appear to not be extremely worried about security measures.

The insides of the castle had different signs of deterioration, but he was more surprised with the different equipment and treasures located in the aisles. There were patrols located inside the fortress as well, but they might have thought that they were patrolling as well since they didn´t bother them.

After a while following the different passages within, they arrived to a wider area, guards before a pair of wooden gates.

"The leader must be there" Balthus muttered next to him.

"Hapi, Constance, spells to silence the area" he whispered as they approached the soldiers in front of them.

"You aren´t allowed to enter this place, turn around or we´ll have to tell…"

The guard couldn´t finish his sentence as he was beheaded in the split of a second.

"Hide the bodies, we don´t want the whole garrison over us" he said as he took care of the body before him.

Once they had disposed of the bodies they stood in front of the wooden gates. He could sense the sword to the other side. It was certainly a dangerous weapon with an unknown potential, but even with all the risks it was wiser to keep it away from the hands of a group of thieves.

"Be sure to not alert anyone" he said before stepping inside.

…

The room was covered in tarnished carpets, torches in the corners of the room. It appeared to be the courtroom of a noble, the remains of an unknown herald at one of the walls.

"Who the hell are you? What are you doing here? Do you want to steal all my treasures? The treasures that me, the great Pallardó has spent so much time collecting, so much time cherishing. How would you dare to come to a place like this"?

"Your treasures? That´s really funny coming from a thief. But there are some other things you should care more about." Balthus laughed as he prepared his fists.

"You have a weapon beyond your control" he said as he carefully approached him. He knew what could happen if he started using the sword, he had already seen the effects of the hero relics in crestless men. He had to stop it before something worse happened.

"Do you mean this sword?" Pallardó said as he pointed it at them. "This weapon has been incredibly helpful during all these years, not once have it failed me. We were even able to get rid of an alliance army with it"

"What…? Are you a wielder of a crest?" asked a shocked Yuri.

"A crest? Not at all, but that doesn´t matter, disappear or reinforcements will certainly get rid of you!"

"You don´t understand, that weapon could drive you insane at any moment!"

"The only ones that are insane are you, if you really think I would give up such gift. I found it at a riverbank, it was a strike of luck that I found it!" he said as he smiled. When he looked back, he could see countless soldiers starting to surround them. The place was filled with enemies, all of them pointing their weapons at them. "It seems that the conditions of surrender have changed, what a pity, you almost had me" he said as he pointed the sword of the creator at them. "Get rid of…"

"Finally, I was able to meet you again. To think I would have to spend so much time in the dirt, how disrespectful, to treat your benefactor like this" It was a woman´s voice, her voice resonating everywhere.

"Who had just talked?" asked a shocked Pallardó looking around.

"Why are you interrupting me, I think I haven´t let you the right to open your mouth" said the voice again as Pallardó´s sword hand fell to the ground, a river of blood accompanying its fall, but the Sword didn´t fell with his arm.

"These years have been so annoying, but I needed a useful idiot to recover some of my powers. You should never underestimate the greediness of your fellow humans. Well, to be fair greed was what created me as well so maybe I should be thankful to that" The woman´s voice within the sword was talking again as it was floating before him, its surface starting to grow brighter.

"What are you?" he asked in disbelief. The bandits around them were as surprised as he was, no one couldn´t believe what was going on. A relic speaking like if it was a living being…or perhaps had it been like that since the beginning?

"You are really sharp, that will make our talk easier, but first allow me to get rid of these nuisances" A explosion of light happened, blinding him for a second. When he recovered his sight, he was shocked to see a pool of blood covering the floor of the room, not a single thief was alive, all of them murdered in gruesome manners that were impossible to describe. He was sure that the vision of those bodies would certainly haunt him for the days to come.

"You shouldn´t surprise like that. I´m sure you have already felt a similar power, when you have come in contact with me" said the voice again, but before him the sword had disappeared. Instead of it a woman of fateful beauty was standing in front of him. Her clothes where whiter than the first snows, her long green hair falling gently up to her waist. He had seen a painting of her at the cathedral what appeared to be years ago, but he felt his heart was about to stop beating the moment he saw her eyes. He was expecting to see a pair of bright green eyes, but there was only a black void where they were supposed to be, the soft skin cracked by the darkness within her eyes. The dark aura coming from its deeps was the veil promise of eternal suffering.

"What are you?" he muttered in shock and disbelief to the being in front of him.

"What a rude way to welcome an old friend, even though I have lent you my strength so many times. You already know the answer to your question. I´m Sothis, the beginning of everything in this world, although others would call me the demise of this world" The woman in front of him said with a light bow.

"How about you take a sit? I´m sure there is much you want to know, although if the knowledge you seek will engulf you in despair is yet unknown to me" she said with a wide sinister smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again, hope that everyone is doing fine. Some people might wonder about this last part, but an explanation will certainly come, don´t worry. See you!


	76. Teatime with the Goddess 邪女神との茶会

"Well, where should we start? How about you take a sit?" The woman in front of him said as pair of chairs and an elegant table materialized next to him. A tea set was already placed on it, its presence bizarre compared to the slaughter that had just happened around him.

"What are you?"

"I told you already, why are you so suspicious about me?" the woman that called herself Sothis said as she approached him.

"Don´t approach!" Balthus roared as he threw at her an axe, but the axe turned into dust before it had even approached her.

"How disrespectful, don´t you understand that the adults here are trying to hold a conversation?" the abomination said as she snapped her fingers, Balthus´s arm falling to the ground.

"Ugh!"

"Balthus!" Constance cried while Hapi and Yuri prepared to attack as well.

"You will pay for it!"

"So, annoying, this lack of education is astonishing, but on behalf of my friend here I´ll contain myself" she sighed before she snapped her fingers again. The four of them were standing still like statues, even the blood pouring from Balthus´s wound appeared to have frozen in the air.

"What have you done!"

"Don´t worry dear, I just stopped their time, they´ll be fine" she smiled before she served herself a cup of tea. "After watching you, I came to the conclusion that talking over a cup of tea could be a good way to get to know you a bit better. How about you take a seat?" she offered, but he didn´t move. "So stubborn…I won´t do anything to them, look" she said as she pointed at them. They were still idle, but Balthus´s arm was intact, as if nothing had ever happened. Then, with a movement of her hand, the corpses around them disappeared, not even the blood remained, as if nothing had ever happened there.

"Now, could you please take a seat? It would be disrespectful after forgiving the insolence of that little kid"

"He isn´t a kid anymore" he said, but he took a seat.

"To me, everyone is a child, although I don´t know how I could describe you, since your insides are really a mess" the woman smiled, before placing her arms on the table. "You really are an interesting being, Byleth Eisner, many powers flow through your veins yet you are actively refusing to use them, like the times you used me to fight. The power of the crest stone and the free communication with Sothis is something that most people would kill for"

"The tiredness I felt those times, was it you?"

"That was just the resistance of your body against me, even though I just wanted to make you stronger. Five years ago, if you had truly embraced your true nature you could have defeated the Immaculate One"

"My true nature?"

"You are half god, half human, Byleth. You have the blessing of immortality and the ability to learn quickly from humans, you have the best of both worlds"

"I don´t believe your words. Besides, I don´t even believe that you are Sothis. The true Sothis…"

"Is inside you? I already know since I´m her"

"That´s nonsense! There is only one progenitor God! You are just a burden imitation!"

"You are too harsh with me, understand that I´m a maid with a faint heart" the woman said before her smile grew wider. "You are correct, there is only one Sothis, yet here I am. Perhaps this reality is something difficult to understand for a half human. I would explain it easier so you can understand" she said as a mirror appeared in front of him, the moment it appeared it shattered, its fragments falling on the table.

"There is only one Sothis, but there are multiple fragments of her and I happen to be the greatest one, and I must dare to say, the most beautiful" the woman giggled, observing her reaction.

He was shocked. It was absurd that something like that could ever happen yet…If Sothis really was like the little girl he knew why the Church depicted her as the woman in front of him. Apart from her eyes, she was exactly how she was described by the Church, and the Church´s leader, Rhea was a child of her. He couldn´t think of any possible reason to describe the Goddess as a small girl, not with Rhea, who seemed to admire her.

"So, you are telling me that there is more than one Sothis. How could that happen?

"By death, to purify this world from the corruption of the great war, I sacrificed everything I had to save the world…although thinking closely about it, it was just a waste of time since the cycle has never ended for good" she sighed.

"The great war? Do you mean the war of liberation?"

"That was just a child´s game by a man that used what remained of my body to do what he pleased. No, I mean the war that shaped this world into what it is. A war of mutual annihilation for the control of this world"

"Against whom?"

"Against humans. They were busy killing each other, but their weaponry was destroying this world in the process. After spending thousands of years in the cold abyss I just wanted to have a place which I could call home…and seeing those idiots ruining everything really made my blood boil…so I decide to wipe them out of existence" she said as if she was talking about a small nuisance.

"That doesn´t make any sense. How could Sothis decide to get rid of humanity? The Sothis I know would do quite the opposite"

"Humanity was bringing the rest of the world to the brink of extinction; it was the logical course of action. But fighting alone would have been too risky, so I decided to create perfected beings of my own flesh. Alongside my children we battled the humans during centuries. They attacked us with spears of light that turned the land into cinders and I sent against them the dark waves of oblivion. The fight was ferocious, but in the end, we were the clear winners, not even their greatest weapon could destroy me, but…"

"But?"

"In the process of saving the world, we ended up destroying it, how ironic isn´t it? A decision born out of justice ended up causing more pain than anything else. The world left for the victors was a wasteland, a land where no one could never possibly live"

"But it is said that the Goddess saved this world and that she is the creator of all things."

"Are you truly believing everything you read?" she sighed "In that case I pity those who would have to follow your orders. Byleth, those texts are exaggerated at best. It is true that with my sacrifice the world was saved, but not all living beings come from me. Most of them were already here, including you, humans. I adopted a form resembling of humans so they wouldn´t need to fear me, but as you can guess only by war they stopped to listen to my words. Humans are really interesting, they think of themselves highly yet they were about to destroy everything so they could get rid of me, although I must admit that I almost did the same. I guess that in the end the ideals of justice are just an excuse we use to get rid of our opponents" she said as she toyed with her hair.

"Do you know why they were fighting against each other before you intervened?"

"People fight other people since the beginning of ancient times, you humans are meant to kill each other to seek new heights, although I can´t really blame you, it is your nature after all. There aren´t many animals that kill for pleasure or for absurd ideals. To be fair, humans are the most irrational creatures I´ve ever met, but that´s what makes life interesting, right? Just a bit of madness" she smiled as she looked directly at him. Trying to look back was proving to be difficult, a dark aura coming from her eyes. "If there is something that you can obtain by force, a human will certainly try to steal it from others. That´s just your nature. The only problem is that you were too developed for your own good. Compared to those times, your actual knowledge is quite lacking"

"Knowledge" In a world where most people couldn´t even read, knowledge was as valuable as gold since through knowledge one could easily obtain more power. However, he had already seen unnatural things that could only be born from that raw desire for more wisdom. "Those who slither in the dark…"

"They seek knowledge to recover what they had once lost. They are the ones that never kneeled, even though the war was already lost by then. They preferred to hide in the shadows where my children couldn´t reach them…and since then, they have held a grudge against me and my descendants, and all of you, kneelers"

"Are you saying that we are the same species?"

"Yes, although they will never admit that. They had the knowledge to unleash living hell on earth, but since their primal defeat they aren't´ what they used to be, but I must admit that I´m not at my prime as well. However, even in defeat, they continued moving in the shadows, and they used my own sacrifice to emerge once again by deceiving a thief and his commanders into raiding my resting place"

"You mean Nemesis and the 10 elites?"

"There was one more of them, but it seems that everyone forgets about him" she laughed as she hid her smile with one of her hands. "History focused on him, but he wasn´t the one behind the onslaught against my descendants. Taking away what remained of me, they crafted an unbeatable weapon"

"The sword of the creator"

"Exactly" she smiled. "The sword might be ulterior to my own demise, but my memories have remained intact since that moment, I was the greatest fragment of the Goddess remaining in this world, after all. The same can´t be said about your little friend" she said pointing at his chest. "Together with the crest stone, the Sword of the Creator was a weapon capable of destroying even mountains. Such was its might that the wielder of the Sword of the Creator, Nemesis, annihilated my descendants, which had been ruling the world since the end of the great war. You have already been to that place, ruins of what appeared to be an ancient civilization long ago forgotten"

"Zanado..."

"Exactly, but they let some of them survive, among them was one of my daughters, a person who seems to have favored you with her scent. What a troublesome girl, but I must admit that the blood is strong in her" she smiled

"Rhea…"

"She used to have other name, was it Seiros? Anyway, she swore she wouldn´t rest until avenging those who fell during those dark times…and she achieved it somehow. Allying herself with a man with endless ambitions they started a war against the almighty Nemesis. The war caused many casualties, but in the end, Nemesis was no more and the war came to an end.

However, the damage was already done. My descendants had almost disappeared, most of them turned into weapons with a conscious of their own. To make things worse our blood had already been mixed with the wielders of such weapons. Discovering the bloody secret behind the king of Liberation, Seiros wondered about the best course of action. Continuing the war would only mean more deaths and the risk of disappearing if the resistance was greater than expected so a vigilant peace was established among what remained of my descendants and the humans of the Surface that they were and still remain unaware to this day about to what extent they have corrupted their bodies with our own"

"The corruption you mean is the power of the Crests? And what do you mean by having a conscience of their own? Does it mean that the hero relics could manifest like you are doing right now?"

"Exactly, an innate power obtained by murder, the Crest manifests to show who is accountable of such unforgivable crime, yet you humans seem to feel proud about holding it, the mark of shame. Regarding your second question, that´s highly unlikely, but even if they are now just bare bones, they remember, they remember what humanity did to them and they seek revenge… that´s the only thing that motivated those weapons…the destruction of humanity and above everything else the destruction of those cursed by the mark of shame"

"But those with crests are able to wield the weapons without turning into beasts"

"They just have a higher tolerance to the corruption that they face, but every second that passes they are closer to transform into abominations. As I told you they remember what you did to them and they will have their revenge. Fascinating, right? I didn´t expect to have such a vengeful offspring, but that makes the situation even more entertaining" she laughed before suddenly changing her expression to a more serious one. "However, current humans shouldn´t worry about it, only those who live long enough will feel the wrath of the relic. It would take several centuries to experience the curse to its full extent"

"If you need to have such long lifespan no one could possibly experience something like that. Who has suffered such fate?"

"The forgotten hero, one of the comrades of that thief had been blessed with its curse. If you are curious about it you should visit the forest you had been through before. If it´s still able to talk is unknown to me, though" she smiled. "But you haven´t made the most important question yet, if the mark brands those who are cursed, what is the fate of the wielder of the Crest of Flames, the greatest crest of all times? Especially, when that particular person has been blessed with an unending life?"

"Are you menacing me?"

"Why would I do that? I´m actually fond of you, otherwise you would be dead by now. However, you must now that your situation is quite unique compared to others. Not only you have my crest, but my core is within yours. Your situation is quite unique, I dare to say. Will you eventually grow mad and destroy everything you are trying to protect or will you act as a new guardian of the world even if you grow weary of it. Countless possibilities are opened to you. With you, everything is a possibility"

"More than a possibility it sounds like a burden" he said as he looked at his own hand.

"Well, if you have been living like this during all these years, you shouldn´t worry too much about it. However, there is something I want to see with my own eyes. How about you try to use your divine pulse?"

"Why should I have to do something like that?"

"Are you afraid of such demand? I´m not asking anything out of your reach, right?" she smiled.

He closed his eyes and tried to activate his powers, but as he tried to do so, he felt as if his heart was being crushed by something, blood pouring from his mouth. It was such the pain he felt, that he fell on his knees while the woman before him looked amused by the situation.

"What…has…just happened?" he said as he tried to catch his breath.

"As I feared, it seems that my daughter has been truly diligent. I wouldn´t expect less from someone that comes from my own flesh after all. I´m afraid to tell you that your divine pulses have been deactivated by a potent cursed placed upon you. I guess that from now on, every decision you will ever made will truly matter, right? This isn´t a kid´s game anymore"

"I cannot longer use them?" he asked as he sat down again. His face was a bit pale, but he didn´t have time to show any weakness before her. Without the power of the divine pulse, it was as she had just said, those who would be lost would be gone for good, no matter what he did. He had already experienced enough pain with the death of his father, if one by one all of them died without being able to change the outcome…"

"Can you revert such spell?"

"Oh, so now you seem to seek for my knowledge. What an interesting change coming from you, that in the beginning was so hostile towards me"

"That hasn´t changed. I don´t trust the being you are, but I can believe some of your words. Tell me, is there a way to overwrite this problem?"

"Well, it really is a problem that no one has ever experienced before, but… there could be something I could do for you" she said as she gracefully placed her hands on the table.

"Tell me"

"How about you make a pact with me?" she asked with a wide smile on her face.

"A pact?"

"Yes, a pact. I´ll grant you my powers, getting rid of the grip that my offspring has on you while at the same time allowing you to overcame every possible obstacle that you might face. With our strengths combined no one will be able to defeat us and everyone could survive through this gruesome war. Don´t you think it would be the best of outcomes? A future where everyone survives, where through your efforts everyone is able to get along once again, the horrors of war long ago forgotten. Such possibility, such potentiality depends only on you"

It was a tempting offer, but despite everything she had told him, he couldn´t just trust her. Even if she was Sothis, she was a twisted version of the one he knew, the one who had saved him when he was blinded by wrath.

"What are you asking for in exchange for your offer? You said that it was a pact, in that case you will want something in return"

"First of all, a bit of gratitude wouldn´t be bad for your health" she smiled. "But I guess that it´s a logical question. I seek to search all the relics that still exist on this world. By absorbing them, my power will be increased and it will reduce the risks of turning innocents into malformed beasts, don´t you agree? This is my first condition in case that you want to have my help"

"I see" If relics were so dangerous it was wise to get rid of them, although allowing a being like her being stronger was a risky bet he was unwilling to accept without hesitation.

"My second condition is to be able to communicate with you freely in any place, at any time. To do so, you must wear this" she said as a purple crystal appeared in front of him. "That way I´ll experience the same reality that you´ll ever experience. Don´t worry, our communications will be impossible to detect by the mortals around us"

The conditions so far were reasonable enough, although the fact of being bounded with such creature for the rest of his life was unnerving. "Although if that way we can save everyone…"

"And my third condition. You´ll give me the crest Stone within your heart" she said as she stood up. "Don´t worry, though I won´t be opening your chest for such matter. Even if by the look of your eyes I feel that you don´t trust me I´m still quite civilized"

"For what purpose?"

"Isn´t it clear? To destroy it"

A few seconds passed before he realized what she had just said.

"You said before that Sothis has been able to communicate with me and granted me her powers via this crest Stone"

"I did"

"And you also said, that she is the core of all the fragments that remain of her, her soul"

"Exactly"

"Then, why a fragment of Sothis would try to get rid of her own core?"

"Isn´t it obvious, to make sure that she doesn´t return, to get free of such weakling" the other Sothis said, her smile unnaturally wide.

"You…"

"I was once like the other relics, lifeless yet not completely death, only a fake consciousness floating in an ocean of senses. But as centuries passed, I started to develop a consciousness of my own. I started to create my own identity. I wasn´t just a fragment of someone else, but an entity of my own. Why the biggest fragment of Sothis should obey a core that has proved to be weak?"

"Sothis has never been weak. Without her the world we know would have never existed!" he said as he stood up.

"Because she was weak, she allowed those that cause pain to this world to run away, if she had been strong, she would have purged this world entirely to rebuild it to her own liking, even if that meant the disappearance of many things"

"Being merciful isn´t a sign of weakness, but a sign of a strong will. Being able to forgive is the sign of a strong soul"

"Do you really think it is? What´s the purpose of being merciful, if that means that the world will bleed again? What is the purpose of forgiving when it is a matter of time that you will sin again? All that has happened to this world since those events could have been stopped if she had decided to destroy everything, but she led the poison spread. Seiros had the same opportunity, but she decided to keep a peace born out of lies, in the hopes that everything would go better in the future…in the hopes that her creator would return…But those promises had turned into ashes and the only result has been more suffering and the unnecessary loss of lives. Humans and Nabatheans had proved to be failures as governors of this world, but the source of all the current problems is base of that weak Sothis's final wish" the other Sothis said as a faint light started to glow from within her.

"I won´t let you sacrifice a friend of mine, she saved me!"

"She saved you not based on a merciful decision, but because she was ashamed of what she really was"

"There must be another way to get rid of such threats without any more sacrifices"

"Are you really meaning it or have you just turned into a madman? You can´t save everyone, not with your current powers at least. No matter what you do someone will die, someone will resent you and all of it will be the consequences of your acts.

The things you fear will turn into reality; you will kill some of your own students. No matter what you do, that future is as clear as a cloudless sky. However, if you make a pact with me, you´ll be able to save everyone, even if they refuse, you can try no matter how many times it takes, you could imprison them, enchant them so they forget their resentment, to allow you to reach the world you wish for. With my strength, you could end the war in a matter of days and before a moon passes all the problems that had been tormenting this world would be gone for good. You said that she sacrificed for your wellbeing. Let her them sacrifice once again for the sake of the world. I can´t think of a better finale for a being like her"

"You are talking constantly about your powers and I must admit that you are powerful enough, but there is no way that we could end this war in a matter of days. You have already said it, your powers aren´t what they used to be. Our enemies are countless, and those primordial humans are still around"

"Do you really think so?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. For the first time in their conversation, she was showing disbelief at his words. "Your lack of faith is highly unusual coming from someone that has the protection of the so-called Goddess, but I guess that to believe sometimes you have to see it through your very own eyes, right?" she said as they were engulfed in a green mist, when it disappeared, they were in the middle of the night sky, the castle where they had been talking thousands of meters beneath them.

"Until now you have experienced many menaces, but you would certainly have never seen the power of someone considered a God. Now take a look to what I offer to you"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, here are many things I need to explain. First of all, the name of the chapter. The translation I chose in English was "Teatime with the Goddess" but I put it like this 邪女神との茶会, basically "Teatime with the evil Goddess" 邪神 is evil god, something malicious in nature. Goddess is megami in Japanese and here I´m forcing that reading into three characters instead of the usual two. This way of forcing something to be read in a different manner isn´t something I´m making up. It serves to catch someone´s action or to give a better insight. In the game you have the famous "my teacher", which is basically forcing the word sensei 先生 into 師which really means master, but its never read like "sensei".
> 
> The other thing I need to explain is the true appearance of Sothis and the "sentience" of relics. In game, we already see how the Goddess is depicted as an adult woman by the Church, which is completely different from the little girl we know. Is it then, the depiction of the Goddess by the Church false? In one of the supports with Rhea you can choose to tell her something about Sothis, if you talk about a little girl (of the three options you had) you get a negative support from Sothis and Rhea is surprised. Wouldn´t she be pleased if she knew that that was Sothis´s form? However, she just seems surprised, perhaps the Sothis she knows is quite different to the one we see…
> 
> Also, Ingame Sothis says that she is just a "fragment" 欠片, but there is nothing more to it, although it could lead to think that the "true" Sothis is something a bit different to the green-haired character we know.
> 
> Regarding the relics, their unnatural characteristics are pointed out in Hilda´s paralogue when she talks about the axe she gets from her brother, as if it was somehow alive. That could explain why they are able to transform crestless people into beasts, as if it was a sort of revenge for what had happened to them. I think that relics affect all people, the only difference is that people with crests have a higher tolerance. If they were truly immune, it wouldn´t make sense what happened to Maurice (the 11th Elite) that everyone has forgotten.
> 
> This is just an explanation of the logic I´ve been following. This isn´t mean to be the absolute truth, just wanted to explain the thinking process on this. See you!


	77. A window to the past 過去への窓

"What are we doing here?" The wind was howling around them, all logic set aside as they looked at each other in the middle of the night sky.

"Instead of wondering about how you are able to stand in the middle of the air like this you continue to demand not so important information" she sighed. "Isn´t it obvious, so you can witness the true power of an entity considered a deity" she said as she extended her arms. "Thousands of years have passed since the last time the blessing of the Goddess descended upon this land. It is time that the blessing descends once again" she continued as her body started to glow. And then, a small orb made out of light came from her body descending upon the land beneath them.

Large cracks started to appear upon the land as a fierce torrent of water was released from the deepest part of the underground. In a mere few seconds, the enraged waters were everywhere, engulfing the fortress and all the lands around. Beneath them the land was no more, a dark sea extending and engulfing more land as time passed.

"What have you released upon this world?" he asked in disbelief.

"The blessing of the Goddess. Water is the source of all life, but at the same time can be the source of death and suffering. With this punishment, those with inferior powers realize how powerless they are against the fury of nature. No matter what you do, no matter how talented you are, the strengths of a mere individual can´t compare to an existence considered to be a god. This is the power that can end the war for good, the power that will make tremble this land once again. Unfortunately, I can´t just abuse it, but I hope that you´ve gotten the message" she smiled as she snapped her fingers once again, teleporting them to a hill in the middle of that dark sea of destruction. "Have this show of power changed your mind?"

"Such destruction just for the sake of showing your strength? This is just madness" he was saying when he realized something. "What have happened to them? Tell me!"

"Getting emotional, aren´t you? What would you do if I tell you that I forgot about them?" she said as she sighed. "I guess, that not even someone like me can keep everything in mind, right?"

"You…"

"It´s a joke, it´s a joke. I know that you hold them dear so I decided it would better to keep them away from this, they are safe, miles away from this mess" she smiled. "This show of strength was more frequent ages ago as the land was scorched and drowned thousands of times. This power was the key to win the great war and somehow the key to bring this world back to life. As I told you, water can be the source of life and destruction, such is the reality of someone considered a god. Adored by some, feared by most, a being wielding such name can be the source of many blessings and calamities" she said as she looked at him. "This is the power that I offer to you, a power of unlimited possibilities. By your side what remains of Agartha won´t be a threat and the rest of armies will crumble before us. With my power you´ll be able to save everyone, even if they don´t want to be saved…you can force your will upon them, enemy or ally so you can obtain the happy ending that your heart wishes. I might be able to bring your family back"

"My…family?"

"Sure! Even if I´m just a fragment of what remains of Sothis as I grow stronger, I might be able to do so. Sothis was able to redeem this world from its sins, bringing someone you hold dear won´t be such a daunting task. You only need to do one sacrifice, and then everything you wish for will turn into reality" she said as her smile grew wider. "A world where there is no more pain, a world where every possible outcome is under your control…A world where everything will follow your will. The fragment within you surely agrees with this. After all, she sacrificed herself for the sake of this world. Sacrificing herself once again can only be her rational way of acting. That´s the will of the Goddess, after all"

"The will of the Goddess…"

"Exactly, the world will be eternally grateful for her sacrifice. Don´t you want to save everyone? With her sacrifice, everything will turn into reality and no one will be able to change such outcome" she said as she offered him her hand.

"A world where everyone is saved" he thought as he felt a strange feeling within him. If such world was a possibility, who would blame him for making a pact with the being before him? A sacrifice for a greater good, for peace…the answer was just in front of him.

"A friend of mine told me to be myself, to choose my own path, to experience life at its fullest. She told me that I wasn´t a tool, that I had a will of my own. When I thought I was a heartless beast she opened my eyes.

I´ve smiled, I´ve cried, I´ve fallen in love…and all of it because she made me realize that I was capable of such emotions. The gratitude I feel for her will never disappear"

"What are you talking about?" she inquired, unable to completely understand what he was saying all of a sudden.

"She might be smaller than you, she might be sometimes lazy, but the Sothis I know has helped me countless times. Sacrificing her despite all she had done to me would be an insult! Without her I wouldn´t even be here. I can´t pay her kindness with her destruction" he said as he looked at her into the eye. He had already made his decision, he wasn´t thinking about changing it no matter how many sweet words were spoken by the being in front of her. Otherwise, he would once again be a tool for the purposes of a greater being.

"So, you refuse such offer because you value your pride over everything else" she said, her smile frozen on her face in an unnatural expression. "I offer you everything you would ever want and yet you think that you can solve everything by your own. Tell me, what will you do?"

"I´ll fight, I´ll suffer, but I´ll try to keep them all alive. Even if some of them are on the other side of the battlefield…I´ll try to protect them with everything I can" he said as he touched his own chest.

"You are delusional if you truly think that you will be able to save everyone. Only a child or a madman would ever think of such possibility. Saving everyone? That´s something impossible to do unless you are a divine being, yet you continue rejecting my offer. The time you spent as a professor has really made you weak"

"Being fond of others isn´t a sign of weakness. I´ll take responsibility of every decision I will take"

"How appropriate, but you should realize something. Your desire to save everyone isn´t something heroic, it´s just your greedy nature. You want to have everything without sacrifices, such outcome could only be possible in the world of a child. I thought you were an adult by now. But I already know that you aren´t going to change your mind. What should I do about you, dear? You have just witnessed the destruction I have caused. Do you think that you can stop a primordial being like me?"

"Someone could always try" he said as he unsheathed his sword.

"Just to tell you clearly, I hate wasting energy. Fighting you would bring me nothing. Why should I do something that would bring me no benefit? Besides, it really annoys me that you think that you can achieve everything without my help. Such pride is something I´ve never seen in a longtime, but don´t be mistaken. No matter what you do, some of them will perish under the flames of this war, innocent or otherwise. After all, four different forces are battling for the future of this land, most of them opposite in their aims.

Allow me to open your eyes, first of all, an unforgivable past…" she said as they were engulfed in a strange mist. When he opened his eyes, they were at the throne room of the imperial palace, the room where he had witnessed Edelgard´s coronation. He was about to say something to his companion when the room to his right suddenly opened.

"The Emperor has tried to leave his private rooms once again. It seems that he is feeling uneasy about the development of the last events" said a fat man with orange hair, although he had more than the last time, he had seen him.

"Does it worry you, Duke Aegir, I thought that you were the most interested in limiting the power of his majesty, am I mistaken?"

"Lord Arundel, such words offend me. I have only been diligent to make sure that rumors do not spread, but some of the guards are uneasy. They say that they hear cries in the aisles close to the deepest dungeons"

"In that case you only need to tell them to patrol the walls of the palace. I have already men loyal to me, if we keep in check the old man everything would be under control"

"Sure, my Lord. I have always obeyed your orders"

"Good, when everything is done the keys of this country will be all yours, your family will inherit the Empire and House Aegir will bring a new dawn to this land" Byleth was tempted to punch Aegir´s dreamy look upon hearing those words, but he knew that it was useless, they were in the past after all.

"I truly hope so. Although to obtain it, my son must marry what remains of Ionius´s legacy. As you know the children are in a really bad state, their bodies…"

"There is no worry about it, the girl is strong, I am confident she will survive, she is the wielder of a crest after all, and I am certain that she will grow into a beautiful woman"

"The kid that came with you from the Holy Kindgom? I was truly surprised when I received a letter from you, Lord Arundel. I thought you had run away from the Empire after…"

"Not at all, my dear friend. I just needed to fix some things in the Holy Kingdom, that was all. You have done great, the policies of Ionius would have caused too much harm on this land. The nobles exist to keep the power of the emperor in check, yet he was trying to steal such power from us. The rebellion was a truly wonderful idea, don´t you think so Prime Minister Aegir? In a few years you could be remembered as the savior of the Adrestian Empire, as the man that saved this empire from crumbling. The Hreslveg line will be erased by the Aegir´s and soon enough everyone would have forgotten these turbulent years" Arundel said as he casted a small fire spell as they started entering the depths of the palace.

"Such is my wish as well, although my son does not know about it yet. He is an exceptional boy, but his ideas are sometimes truly troublesome"

"Better to keep him ignoring the reality of this world, when he comes of age, he will understand the sacrifices that his father had to take in order to bring a better future to this land. The situation in the surroundings of the empire is getting worse as you should know by now. Dagda and Brigid have made an alliance and that could mean an invasion at any time and the nobles of the Holy Kingdom are displeased with King Lambert last reforms. In times like this we need a man like you as a prime minister. The Emperor is old and weak and we still need time until we develop our ultimate weapon"

"If my son will be the head of a new dynasty, he will need healthy heirs, do you think she will be capable of…"

"There is no need to worry about it, she will fulfill her role and bring new heirs to the throne…and when everything has been done, she will disappear as if she had never existed. But I know that look in your eyes, you still have your doubts, don´t you? In that case you just need to come with me, I will be paying a visit to my niece"

"Yes, my lord" Aegir said as he meekly followed Lord Arundel into the deepest part of the palace. They continued walking for many minutes until they suddenly stopped before an iron gate guarded by two masked men.

"Lord Arundel, it is always a pleasure to see you here"

"The pleasure is all mine, now if you can allow us to access"

"It´ll be done, my lord"

With a heavy sound, the door started to open, revealing an entrance to a room engulfed in darkness.

"Please, accompany me" Lord Arundel said as he entered the room. The room was completely empty, except for the chains that were holding a small girl at one of its corners. Her hair was still brown, but the ends of her hair were starting to turn white.

"Here it is, our greatest creation, the perfect emperor that will make this world tremble" Lord Arundel said as he approached her. "El, don´t hide your face and look at us, be a good niece to your dear uncle"

"Don´t call me by that name…"

"That´s not the proper way to address me, dear niece" he said as he kicked her stomach while Aegir just observed afraid of doing something that could enrage the Lord. "How many times do I need to correct you. Besides, there aren´t so many people that call you by that name anymore, it would be a pity if it disappeared, don´t you think?"

"Don´t call me…by that name"

"You are truly stubborn" he said as he grabbed her from her hair, she was extremely thin, countless injuries on her body, yet her eyes were filled with determination. "But I must admit that I like that side of yours, you would have been broken by now if you were weak" he smiled before looking at Aegir. "The power we have placed within her grows stronger as time passes. The fact that she has survived so many injuries is a living proof of our success. You should be proud of yourself, El, the sacrifice of your brothers and sisters wasn´t in vain. Someday we could place a monument in their memory. "For the greater good", how does it sound?"

"Don´t insult their memory! I will… I will!"

"Attack me, kill me? Do you think that you are capable of something like that? You are still a kid if you truly think that you are capable of even touching me" he laughed. "Killing me would only satisfy your own ego, do you think that your brothers and sisters would think proudly of you if you killed me for your own personal satisfaction?"

Ire was consuming him. He just wanted to cut in half Lord Arundel and Duke Aegir, yet he was powerless before them, a ghost observing the past.

"Well, as you can see, the little Princess is strong, you shouldn´t worry about it. Right now, there are more important matters to discuss, shall we return to your private rooms?"

"It would be an honor, Lord Arundel" Duke Aegir said as they closed the door behind them, leaving them alone with the Edelgard of the past.

"I´m sorry…I´m sorry…I failed all of you" the girl said as a lonely tear fell to the ground. Like him, the Edelgard of the past was powerless against her captors, but even if it was something that had happened years ago, he couldn´t avoid feeling depressed about it. He wanted to hug her, tell her that everything would go ok…"

"That would have no purpose, we are just silent spectators of the past" she said but he approached her. He extended his hand to cherish her face, but his hand passed through her body.

"In this place is where she developed her resolution, something worth of witnessing, but she isn´t the only one scarred by the past" she said as the room where they were disappeared. He could hear through the mist cries and the clash of swords. When he reopened his eyes, he could see a battlefield unfolding in front of him. Soldiers fighting against masked men, blood turning the dirt red. When he saw one of the banners, he realized what was happening in front of him.

"The tragedy of Duscur" he muttered.

"Indeed. The royal troops were ambushed and the king was murdered, but that story is something that you already know, right?"

Walking through the bodies, he spotted a downed carriage. Next to it a young boy was holding someone between his arms.

"Father!"

"Dimitri…We were betrayed…if I had been more cautious something like this would have never happened. I was…too naïve"

"No, father, please stay with me!" the young boy said while sobbing but he was stopped by his father´s hand.

"Dimitri…you must survive…to make sure that those here aren´t forgotten…to avenge us…to bring justice to this world"

"Father…"

"I´m sorry I leave you with such burden, but a king must live for its people…you might feel crushed by the number of responsibilities, but such is our fate…my brother will help…tell him to upbring you for the sake of the future…for the sake of the Holy Kingdom" King Lambert said as life left his eyes.

"Father…I promise you I´ll avenge all of you, your deaths won´t be ever forgotten. I promise you…I will claim justice for this…" the young boy said as he stood up and looked around. His eyes were red because of crying, but he was familiar with that look of his face. "Justice for the dead…justice for all of you…that´s the only thing that matters…the only thing that has a purpose"

"Pretty strong words coming from such a young boy, right" muttered her companion. "The little girl and the little boy are the most scarred by the past. One cherishes a future that may never come to fruition, while the other cherishes the past out of respect for those who have left this world under such tragic circumstances"

"But Dimitri accused Edelgard of the tragedy of Duscur, but that doesn´t really make sense. Why he thought that she was responsible of it?"

"Perhaps, in the hopes of finding a culprit he chose to believe she was the one. Understanding a tormented soul is something that not even a being like me can fully understand. The only thing that matters is that his hate forwards her will never change. There is no world where both of them can coexist, not like this…and there is also my daughter. She will never forget and she longs for a past that will never be…Such are the burdens of immortality I guess…Being unable to forget, being unable to forgive. In the hopes of seeing her mother she defied the laws of nature and as a result you are among us. Tell me, do you hate her because of what she made to you?"

"No, even if she thought of me as just a vessel…even if I was nothing to her, that doesn´t mean that I hate her"

"A hero´s heart is generous, I guess, although some people would say that being merciful of your enemies is the proof of a foul" she said while covering her mouth. "It would be rude to leave the last protagonist of our visit to the past alone, don´t you think?" she said as the reality around them started to fade away one more time.

"You are an abomination"

"That´s not true!"

"You have the marks of the demons, only people from the grey lands are like that, your blood is mixed with them. You will never inherit the throne, half-brother" said a tall boy to a younger one, green eyes his most unique feature.

"I speak the same tongue than you, we have the same values yet you still consider me a foreigner. What do I have to do so you can accept me?"

"Just disappear from here, this is not your place. You are a shame to our ancestors, half-human. The grey lands have always caused pain and demise to this land yet you think that you can be one of us. Don´t think you are above us all!" the older boy said as he slapped the younger in the face, but he didn´t cry. "I´m leaving, you are pissing me off"

"Why things have to be like this…why everything has to be so irrational…this world needs to change…someday I´ll do it…I´ll make a world where everyone has their opportunity to shine…a world where prejudices are a thing of the past"

"Instead of wishing for his death, he wants to change the world. Talking about idealists…A world with such qualities is something certainly difficult to achieve without enough power"

"That´s why he is the leader of the Alliance, to achieve his dreams"

"Certainly, and he will fight to achieve them. As you can see, all of them have their own desires. How will you save all of them without divine powers? The answer is that you cannot. You are doomed to fail since you´ve already chosen a side. The consequences of such decisions would mean the end of many of the people you know so well, although if I wanted to bet something, I would say the most prone to listen would be the little boy before us"

"Thank you for showing me these visions of the past"

"I didn´t mean to help you. I´m just showing you why you are doomed to fail in your quest" she sighed. "Everyone has their own story, but in the end, one must prevail among the others. In your state there is no possible way that you can save them all…in the end…" she was saying when she suddenly stopped.

"What´s the matter?"

"It seems that we have a visit waiting for us" she said as she snapped her fingers once again, the world of the past disappearing into the reality.

They were again on the hill, surrounded by the dark waters, yet two persons were standing in front of them, clothed in black armor.

"Who are you, as you can see I´m trying to have a conversation"

"You…are you responsible of this?"

"I´m not interested in talking with someone that hides their true face under a helmet…although your scent tells me who you are. What brings you here, inhabitants of the underworld?"

"The fact that you are capable of talking is truly unnerving" said a man´s voice. "Such unnatural being must be eradicated for the greater good"

"Don´t waste your energy talking with it, Chilon" said a woman´s voice. "Don´t you see that it´s just a copy of our ancient enemy?" she said as her attention was caught by him. "So, it´s true that you have somehow survived. We have underestimated you, the fact that you are still breathing is a proof of your resilience and our lack of sight"

"Ignoring me like this, have a price don´t you think? I was in the middle of a very important conversation, yet you dare to disturb it and then you proceed to ignore me? Such behavior is something that I can forgive"

"The answer to your question is simple. We have no intention of engaging in conversation with an abomination like you, we have only come in the search of him"

"Why?"

"To offer you an alliance, to avoid that this world drowns in despair"


	78. Ancient times 古代

"An alliance with you?" he asked surprised. Of all things that they could have said it was the only thing he didn´t expect hearing from them.

"You sound surprise and I could not possibly blame for it, but for the greater good some dubious alliances must be done" said the closest to them. The armor that both of them were wearing was completely black, runes carved on it. "Crest stones" he quickly guessed. "We live in quite turbulent times. A war without certain end is ravaging the surface and in the middle of all of it, ancient beings try to return to this world. The level of such threat is something that cannot be overseen"

"You should know the consequences of your actions before doing so risky bets" said the self-proclaimed Sothis, a bit of anger in the tone of its voice. "How many times have you tried to overcome the outcome of a war you already lost? How many generations will take until you realize that you have already lost, not even the pass of time has allowed your kind to recover what they once lost. Your hopes for a past long ago forgotten are nothing but the dreams of a madman"

"The dreams of a madman? How ironic that such words come from such filthy mouth. In your quest for justice, you caused unnecessary suffering to this land"

"The same land that you were trying to destroy, to be more accurate"

The ambiance was tense, he knew that at any moment a battle could happen, and he was just in the middle of two ancient enemies. They were so focused on each other that they appeared to have forgotten about him, until one of the two armored warriors spoke again.

"Wielder of the Fell Star, you have the power to decide the fate of many. I beg of you, use that power for the sake of mankind. We, the primordial humans have known for ages the power of those who considered themselves gods. Their sins have since then fairly outweighed ours. If this world is rooting, if this world has stopped its development it is because of the devious acts of the descendants of the Fell Star…And now that a fragment of such threat is willing to create a new rule to subjugate the entire mankind it is the time to ally yourself with those that have battled for the wellbeing of mankind since the beginning of these dark ages"

"Fighting for you? You, the ones that consider all of us insects undeserving of life, you, the ones that have committed so many atrocities just for the sake of your own ambitions…One of your kind was responsible of the death of my father. Do you really think that I would ally with the likes of you? The only thing you´ll ever receive from me is my ire" he said, his eyes filled with hate towards the beings in front of him. He trusted neither of them.

"It is true, but every sacrifice made was for the greater good of this land. Every death, every sacrifice had its purpose. However, I must admit that Kronya was a loose end, a being whose existence we regret to this day. Her death wasn´t a pleasant one, although I dare to say that you already know such circumstances. But in that case, are you going to join forces with the being in front of us? Her existence will cause disruption to this world and many lives could be unnecessarily lost"

"Talking about a lack of self-awareness. I thought you were describing you and your kind. Don´t believe them, Byleth, my aims aren´t to oppress this world. I couldn´t care less about such thing, but these guys…they will never be honest about their true objectives, such is their nature. It would be more sensible to sleep surrounded by scorpions that to join forces with them. Words mean nothing, only the acts we do truly matter"

"An oath to an Agarthan is the most sacred thing in its existence. An Agarthan´s oath is meant to be protected; such are the rules that bind us together" one of them said as it offered its hand. "Under an oath we shall never interfere with you and those under your protection. It is on the best of interests that the surface and the primordial humans stay on good terms and we could even provide knowledge to overcome many of the calamities that have plagued this world for many centuries. With knowledge, the world will overcome many of its current problems, such as disease and fanatism"

"And it would develop many others as destruction of unimaginable consequences. Their words are filled with empty promises, but mine will turn into reality. You only need to accept my offer. I don´t care about who ends being the ruler of this land. To me such matters aren´t worthy of my attention" she was about to say something more when she was engulfed in black flames. He didn´t need to look at the source of the attack to know those who were responsible.

"And like this the time of words comes to an end" he thought as he prepared to battle as well.

"You two…..annoy me, please die like the cockroaches that you are" Pointing her hand at the two of them a massive ball of intricated energy formed from it, even from the distance they could feel the powerful magic being concentrated in a sphere of pure ire.

"If you are willing to play war games with me, catch it!" She said with joy before she threw it at them at a great speed.

He knew that the attack had an immense power so he created distance between them with a freezing spell over the waters, but the other two were standing still, adopting a defensive position as the magic sphere impacted on them. The following explosion shattered the very ground they were standing, tearing away rocks with ease. The shockwave sent him flying many meters away, making him grunt when his body landed roughly on the ice platform he had just created. A cloud of dust was the only thing he could see of the hill where a few minutes ago they were standing, the false Sothis pleasingly witnessing the result of her powerful spell.

"I must admit that I´m utterly disappointed. How pathetic….I expected more from the best agents of the Agarthans, I suppose that a worm with power is still nothing but a worm. Well, with those two clowns out of the way I suppose I should deal with you. Your refusal to join forces with me will have consequences. I might be a merciful being, but my patience has a limit and I´m afraid that you have overstepped many times. It is a pity, I really thought we could get along to achieve our own objectives. I suppose that I didn´t read you correctly…I thought you would be willing to make sacrifices for the wellbeing of others"

"And I´ll do them if needed. What I´m not willing to do is to turn into your slave"

"Such is the greedy nature of men. They want everything without losing anything. Don´t you understand how selfish is that way of thinking? You disappoint me deeply, Byleth Eisner. Of all people I thought you would be the one to understand the true meaning of making sacrifices for a better outcome…after all, your entire existence only has meaning depending on the people you will be able to save or not" she said as her hand started to canalize more magic. But then a spear made of dark energy came from the ruins of the hill, impacting on her.

The sudden attack threw her off balance, making her fall to the ground. Steam was coming from where the attack had collided. On the opposite side of what remained of the hill, they were standing still, the runes on their armors shining in a malevolent light.

"It will take more than an oversized ball to take us out abomination!"

"Just like the rest of your brethren, you reek of pride and arrogance to the point to blind you to the truth. You are not as strong as you think you are and we shall prove it to the world once we slay you and claim your power"

Their joy was short lived when Sothis stood up again, not real apparent damage on her body with the exception of a few burns on her clothes where the main impact had taken place. Slowly she started to get rid of the dust from her clothes as she started to float in the air, a green aura appearing around her.

"Well, well well….it seems that the children do have guts" Her voice was hollow, icy cold to the point that if she had wanted, she could had frozen them in place. "You will regret not finishing me off with one attack" She said with malice as the black waters around them started to violently move.

Both sides appeared to be focused on each other, ignoring him, a silent witness of the clash between two ancient foes.

"Bold words from a monster, but is just that, words. We know what you will do to the world and we will stop you"

"Are you trying to sound like a hero now? You truly are clowns…so full of yourself. You get hit once by a mortal and the next thing you see is that they think they are invincible. What a pain of beings you are. I´ll finish the work that I must have finished thousands of years ago. The duty that the Primordial Sothis should have achieved if she didn´t have any mercy against you.

I will admit that I have made the grave mistake to underestimate your…..tenacity to be an annoyance to me. Under normal circumstances I would not care but thanks to your efforts I know now that the play time is over, now you shall feel the full power of the Progenitor God!"

Great streams of water started to pour out from the ground around them, forming under Sothis´s body a small size lake that it was growing by the second. Around the edges of the dark waters a wall was erected, hiding her from the view of her opponents.

The two Agarthans decided to step back in case it was an attack, their bodies quickly teleported to the edges of the plateau as they decided to watch how things would develop. Meanwhile he was using his freezing spells to run away from the epicenter of the great mass of water that was forming next to heavily damaged hill.

Once the wall of water dissipated, they could see the so-called Sothis again, but this time there was a few important changes on her body. Her body was suspended a few meters up in the air, her eyes shining with a sickly tone of magic. Her features were far sharper than before giving her a more haunting appearance, but it was down below her waist where the real change had taken place. No longer she had legs as they had been fused with the dark waters below, giving her an otherworldly appearance.

"You should be proud vermin, many would kill to be in your place" she said, her voice echoing through all the area, as all kind of birds flew away in panic. He could also hear all kind of animals running away from the upcoming calamity.

The Agarthans response was sending at her a volley after volley of magic spells and bullets, all aimed at her heart, but she merely raised a wall of water, absorbing the attack as if nothing had ever happened. He detected some movement around as strange devices started to launch their own projectiles against her. The spells produced explosions, evaporating some of the water but it was quickly replaced while the bullets were slowed down to the point that they lost all their power, devoured by the ever-growing mass of water.

"Are you quite finished? Good, now it's my turn" With the slightest movement of her wrist the water around her started to levitate in dozens of columns.

"Take cover!" could hear someone shouting, as he erected his own magic barrier.

The projectiles pierced the night sky as they approached their objectives. Some of them erected magic barriers, while others teleported, but defenses against the rage of the elements was just delaying the inevitable. Not all the projectiles followed a straight direction. They were acting as if they were somehow alive, searching for those who had provoked the ire of the powerful being before them.

One would not have ever thought that water could be such a terrifying weapon, but the horror before him was telling him otherwise. The land was perishing under the rage of the storm, trees taken down as the petals of a flower, not even the hills and mountains around were able to resist the pressure of the giant mass of water crushing it. There was no doubt that if one of those projectiles were to hit bare flesh it would tear apart large chunks of if from the body, not even iron or steel could withstand such pressure.

But even in the chaos of the attack, the Agarthans were still fighting back. Even though all kind of devices had been devoured by her fury, they were resisting as a giant creature of fire was emerging from their size of the battlefield.

"Fire? Really? You disappoint me"

She said triumphally but she then noted a presence behind her.

With outmost speed she turned around in time to face the other Agarthan who had used her momentary distraction to get behind her. She was met with a blade that almost severed her head from her shoulders but thanks to her reflexes it just merely cut her left arm off, spilling a torrent of green blood to the ground, mixing immediately with the water below.

Her surprise was short lived when her eyes shined with an ever-stronger aura. With renewed anger Sothis threw at the Agarthan four of the water columns who had suddenly turned into massive solid spikes that started to rotate fast as they were released, but he quickly evaded the streams of water with the skill of a dancer, flying on the surface of the dark sea.

Enraged even further the very ground started to shake. The visible land starting to crumble before the might of her power.

"Don't you think that you are going anywhere filthy creature!" as she shouted, what remained of her left arm became a massive and elongated trail of water that ended in an oversized three fingertip claw.

With it she managed to grab one of the Agarthans who could not avoid to yelp in surprise when he was carried away from the ground as if he was a leaf, her claws quickly increasing the pressure to the point that it could be heard the sound of metal bending by the monstrous force. Not even a relic armor could save him from the demise that was awaiting him.

"Look at you, a bug about to be squashed" she said as she enjoyed how she felt the man's agony.

But the hand was cut in half by a silver spell, allowing the Agarthan to fall down to the ground, freed from its watery execution.

"How many times are you going to disturb me? How many times are you going to delay the inevitable? You should know your place" she sissed as a smile formed on her face. "But now I know where you truly are. I will drown all of you" she said as the black mass of water beneath her turned into a mighty torrent, devouring everything that stood before it. "To the east your ambitions will come to an end. To the east the last defense of Agartha will come to an end!"

The barriers erected by the Agarthans were useless as if a child was trying to stop the might of the sea with a wall made out of sand. The powerful being appeared to have lost all interest on him as the waters followed the path of destruction while the devices of the Agarthans were trying to block her path. But he knew he couldn´t just go to another place. He needed to stop the calamity before it turned into a living hell.

"I won´t allow the ancient times to happen again" he said to himself as he started chasing them.

….

"Hubert, are you ok?" she asked surprised. Hubert´s usual pale face was even paler than usual.

"Apologies, Lady Edelgard, but I have just felt a strange discharge of magic power"

She was about to ask what did he mean, when she felt something strange within her. A strange pain ran through her body but as soon as it noticed it, it had already disappeared. Around them she could see many mages feeling uneasy as well, some of them even on the floor.

"What´s happening Hubert?"

"This must be a reaction to strong levels of magic within the air. The air around us must be unusually charged with magic and as a consequence those sensitive to this art suffer the consequences of an overcharge"

An overcharge of magic was the thing that she least desired when she was about to send part of her troops to the west of Fódlan.

"What is the origin of such event?"

"I am not completely sure about it, but the air coming from the east is unusually charged"

"That could mean that a battle is taking place to the east!" she said alarmed. "The Alliance forces might be trying to invade the east side of the Empire. Perhaps a mole has told the enemy about our next steps and they have already started their offensive to overcome us. We can´t tolerate something like this to happen!

I´ll go with you and the rest of the Black Eagles Strike Force to the east. The rest of the forces must continue advancing to the west as aforementioned. Tell Ladislava to be weary of informants of the enemy as she heads to the west"

"Understood, Lady Edelgard, I hope that my sign of weakness isn´t the sign of an offensive coming from the east"

"We can´t truly know, although it could be a possible outcome. For months the Alliance has been preparing many fortifications on its side of the border and our informants have reported to us many movements of troops. Even if it just happens to be a false alarm, we cannot simply ignore a potential threat, even less when some of our own troops have felt such incapacitating effects"

"Your words are wise, Lady Edelgard, I will tell everyone so we can head to the east as soon as possible" Hubert said while bowing.

"Are you truly attacking now, Claude?" she thought as she looked around. Compared to Dimitri, Claude had always been cautious, always observing his surroundings before taking a decision. If he was truly attacking now that would mean that he was certain that there were more gains that risks and that could mean anything. Of all her opponents he was the most difficult to read, the only one he couldn´t really see the steps he was taking in order to take the upper hand.

….

The situation was problematic to say the least, nothing was able to withstand the fury of the elements which were advancing to the east. The giant trees had already disappeared, the great plain of Fódlan in front of them and with it probably the first villages that could suffer of the upcoming disaster. Among the animals that were running away from the disaster he was able to mount a small sized wyvern, but even at flying speed he was having difficulty to reach them. All kind of strange devices were flying on the air throwing projectiles to the fake Sothis, but it was like trying to kill a wyvern with a needle.

"Titanus! Eliminate the abomination! We command you!" roared a voice as an army of golems flew forward the primordial being, but they were welcomed by giant hands made out of water that crushed one after another with ease. However, those were just a distraction as another group of Golems had just teleported in front of her detonating all of them at the same time. The shock wave made the water beneath boil, slowing down its flow.

"You send puppets to attack me!? How disrespectful!"

From the ground a massive tower of pure energy erupted. Its intensity blinding them momentarily.

"You have underestimated me for the LAST TIME!" Finally, her more humane form had disappeared, leaving behind a monster, six massive serpents were emerging from her waist as well as turning into her legs, her arms turned into a multitude of tentacles and blades. Her chest as well had turned into water but some kind of black carapace had appeared on it. Only her head seemed to remain unchanged but that was debatable.

"You wanted a challenge!? Then here you got one!" she roared.

"Concentrate your attacks on her limbs then proceed with the main body!" with that command the remaining golems and weapons set to fight off the massive serpent like limbs, their massive size and shields allowing them to approach although they were received by a literal rain of death.

The two Agarthan generals did not stand idle as they continued to throw at Sothis anything they had at their reach, be it metal or magic.

As they started to bomb her with a torrent of projectiles, black clouds started to cover the sky. With each golem destroyed, an explosion happened, but the more they tried weakening her the more furious she was.

"I got tired of this farce. It is time to end this" she said as she extended her claw-like arms, the water beneath accumulating within her body. Fearing the worse he erected a magic barrier.

He felt something soft falling on his lap, when he looked at it, it was the head of the wyvern he had been mounting until now. It had just been killed as everything around him. The fall to the ground was painful, but he was shocked to witness a world of unreal destruction. The land was filled with craters and only fragments of the combatants could be seen. A lonely arm with a strange glyph on it made him realize that the generals had met their fate as well.

"No matter where you look at, they are all dead. This is the power of the Goddess, the water of desperation or should I call it the tears of the Goddess? I´ll get rid of what remains in a short while, but first I´ll need to get rid of you as well. You had refused my offer too many times to be alive. Nothing personal, my dear" she said as she extended her hand, but he was already running away.

"Don't run away from me, child! It's not a proper behavior!

Byleth did not waste time listening to her as he continued to jump over the tree branches in an effort to put as much distance between him and her, evading the streams of water and massive watery claws that were trying to kill him.

The claws were about to hit him, when they suddenly froze.

"Another annoyance!"

When he looked back, he couldn´t believe his eyes, the lifeless land was filled with giant wolves, packs that were charging at the only living being they could see in front of them as giant eagles were descending from the skies. All kind of monster that he had not seen before were gathering, they were looking for blood.

"Filthy creatures! You dare attack your betters!? How disrespectful!"

"He is not alone, you witch!" said a familiar voice.

"Hapi?"

"I am sorry that it took us so long but miss wannabe ruler of the world right there thought convenient to send us to the middle of nowhere. My hair got all messy and that demands holy retribution"

"It was kind of a pain to reach you, but it seems as if you had handled it very well"

"So much effort has made me sleepy, let's get over this before I take a nap"

"The high levels of magic coming from this being could booster my reputation and bring House Nouvelle to a new dawn…but even in that case I will not let you cause any more harm!"

"I thought I lost all of you" he smiled before he focused on the threat before them.

"It will take more than a faulty teleportation to take us out Byleth, you should know that better than everyone" said Yuri jokingly. "But now that we are finally here, we shall show this wannabe goddess the might of mankind"

"You again!? You humans are like a plague, so hard to eliminate when all that you should do is lie dead and use your feeble bodies to feed the ground as your kind has done for millenniums. That way your miserable and useless lives would have a purpose as servants"

"I´m not interested in such contract" Yuri said as he avoided a projectile aimed at him as the sea of monsters charged at the being before them.

The monsters were great in size and numbers, but they were being teared apart by the attacks of the primordial being, their flesh pierced by all kind of water projectiles. He knew that she would get rid of them in no time. To avoid such outcome, he needed to end the battle fast, but how? He wondered as he avoided one of the giant spears of water. He then caught a glimpse of something within her.

"There is only one try" he thought. As he started to canalize his own energy into his hand, a freezing aura coming from them.

"ENOUGH" roared a voice, as the hundreds of beasts around where quartered by her fury, lonely limbs, claws or wings falling to the ground around her. She was about to focus on them, but it was already late as he propelled himself with his own ice pilar. The projectile froze and shattered the water it touched as it pierced through the center of the being. The giant mass of water froze as the primordial being in front of him fell to the ground, its natural size recovered. She was trying to stand up again, but he was already on her.

"It´s over" he simply said as his sword pierced through her chest.

"It seems that I underestimated you, but my dreams will never perish" she said with an unnatural smile as she tried to approach him, the sword going even deeper until it was stopped by the hilt. "Let´s reward such willpower of yours, even if that will be the source of the deepest despair" she said while extending her arms as if she was welcoming the death, he had brought to her.

"You are a monster" he replied in disbelief.

"A monster with a generous heart" she said as her hands approached him. With his free hand he tried to destroy them, but he could feel how his strength was abandoning him as everything grew dark around him.

"Show me the future you wish for, so I can see it turn into dust"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, the rencounter will probably take place on next chapter. Sorry for the bit of delay, but I had crappy connection until now.


	79. Unforeseen encounter 予想外な再会

"Professor, professor, wake up! This isn´t the time to be taking a nap"

He opened his eyes. Around him he could see a desolated land, open wounds on the ground and lonely limbs scattered all around. Not counting them, there was no other living being around in miles.

"Where are we exactly?"

"We are between Gloucester and Riegan lands, so you could say that we are in the middle of the alliance. Quite a trip if we were in the far west of the Leicester Alliance just hours ago"

"I think we shouldn´t be here for too long, since we must have alerted half the continent about our presence. I wouldn´t be surprised if an alliance army comes to this place to check what the hell has just happened" Yuri said as he adjusted his sword belt. "Can you stand by your own?"

"Yes, don´t worry" he said before his hand noticed something besides him. "The sword…"

The Sword of the Creator was next to him as if nothing had ever happened. When he touched it, it glowed weakly before its glow disappeared. He also noticed that the cracks that were on its surface had disappeared, but apart from that the Sword appeared to be just a sword, an empty sensation as he touched it. Sheathing it, he looked at his companions.

"You are right, we must leave this place before unwanted visitors appear. We should head south to leave the Alliance territory as soon as possible. We already got what we needed here"

"The closest path would be by the great bridge of Myrddin, but as one would expect is heavily guarded. We could head west and approach the river in a lest populated area. Hapi, do you think that you could warp us that way?"

"I could, but I´ll need to rest for a while to restore all my energy. I´m completely exhausted after everything that has happened"

"True, but we have to leave this place now. We´ll discuss about it later when we find a place to spend the night" he said as he started advancing. They were in the middle of the great plain of Fódlan and they risked being easily detected by the alliance forces. He wondered if some of the Golden Deer students were leading such armies in the search of the responsible of what had happened, but he didn´t have any time to wait for such army to arrive.

…..

"We´ve been walking for hours. I need to get some rest" Hapi said while sighing.

"Don´t do that!" Balthus said alarmed knowing what were the effects of such action, but nothing happened.

"I think that there aren´t more monsters alive nearly. Perhaps half of the monster´s population had been eliminated by this battle. That would be a good change for a while"

"The fact that such powerful being could exist is something that defies the human mind" Constance muttered as she used her parasol to avoid the sunlight.

"Hopefully is gone for good, right?"

"Yes, I feel it" he said as he cautiously touched the surface of the sword. He detected nothing within it as if it was just another sword. It was strange although a part of him was relieved by that.

"This area should be a good place to get some rest" he said as they approached a small group of bushes and trees. It was big enough to hid them from any troops nearby and it could protect them from the elements in case they decided to spend the night there.

"Thanks the Goddess we can get some rest. I was planning on deserting if we continued like that" Hapi said while sitting on a rock. Balthus was picking some berries while Constance was sitting as well reading a magic tome. Yuri was on the top of a tree, checking the surroundings. For a moment he felt like they had returned to the monastery days, when everyone was safe.

"Byleth, come here" Yuri´s voice said from above. Climbing the tree, he approached the leader of the Ashen Wolves. His face was focused on the direction whence they have come.

"It´s difficult to see even with amplifying magic, but it seems that Alliance Troops are already there"

"Can you see any familiar herald?" If they were in lands of Gloucester it would be normal to see the sigil of Gloucester´s forces. Most nobles had their own sigils and he knew that a proud House as Gloucester would identify himself with its sigil as a sign of mightiness.

"No, just the generic flag of the Alliance. I don´t see anything else, but they are too far away anyway. They must be as surprised as we were. I´m sure that they will spend the next hours there, checking every single stone to get an idea of what has happened there"

"Hopefully they´ll spend enough time so they don´t detect us"

"What should we do, Byleth? Should we continue or should we rest here?"

"Continuing would be in the best of interests, but all of us are exhausted and in a couple of hours the day will come to an end. If we want to be undetected, we can´t use torches or fire spells. We´ll spend the night here, but nothing of fires. They would quickly detect us if we use a fire"

"They will certainly protest, but I get it. In all these years we´ve spent our time travelling from one place to another, avoiding always the main routes. Most of the forces of the Alliance are at the borders, but that doesn´t mean that there aren´t any patrols in the inner areas"

"In war being careful can mean the difference between victory or a crushing defeat. They must be confused now, but if they think that they had been attacked…"

"There will be consequences"

"Exactly, although I´m not sure how they will come to understand what has happened there. A human army couldn´t possibly achieve such degree of destruction"

"To be fair, I wouldn´t have believed if I wasn´t there" he said as he yawned. "Anyway, time to get some rest. The army is far enough we can rest without unpleasant surprises"

"I´ll be taking the first turn"

"Thanks for that, counting on you"

…..

Night had already fallen on them, a cool breeze coming from the northwest. In the distance he could still see the torches of the soldiers of the Alliance which were still checking the surroundings. The troops had been searching from east to west, sending patrols and scouts as well. When the day was coming to an end the first carriages had arrived, picking the things that were scattered all around. He couldn´t about wondering what they were talking about at this moment, but he knew that most of them would have been surprised to see a desolate land in the middle of the Alliance with the responsible agents to no avail.

"Is it over for good?" he wondered as he observed the sword to his side. Since the battle he didn´t feel nothing strange coming from it, as if its former inhabitant had disappeared from this realm. That was relieving to say the least, but there were still many mysteries unresolved. The nature of the crests was one of them.

He already knew that they were capable of turning humans into mindless beasts, but it was unnerving to know that they could affect crest bearers as well. According to that being, one of the heroes of old had fallen to such curse, but locating a forgotten hero, could proof to be a difficult task, since he could be anywhere…or dead for good. He needed to know if the curse affected crest bearers differently or their fate was no different to ordinary humans. He wouldn´t forgive himself if some of his friends turned mad because of their abuse of relic weapons.

The second matter he needed to resolve was the destruction of the Agarthans. Time and a time again, they had proved to be a threat impossible to ignore. Most of the problems that existed in Fódlan had been caused by them, an ancient civilization that wasn´t willing to disappear. As a consequence of their last encounter, he had come to understand the deep hate between the two factions that had written most of the history of Fódlan. The clashes between both forces had shaped the world into what it was; a broken, incomplete reality. The being that had been inhabiting the Sword of the Creator had said that their last stronghold was to the east of the land, but how far?

They were in the middle of the Alliance, the areas to the far east weren´t as densely populated as the coastal areas to the north or the south of the Alliance since the constant invasions from Almyra had prevented settlements to be permanently established there. Such area could be suitable to have a hidden base, but he still had doubts. Even if in that area there was their last stronghold, that didn´t mean that all their forces were located there. To clearly defeat them they would need not only to destroy their hidden base, but get rid of all the forces that were scattered all around Fódlan…and all of that in the middle of a war.

"There has no use to search for them until we cross the border, but we can´t really ignore them. We can be stabbed in the back at any moment" In the shadows they dwelled and, in the shadows, they remained waiting for their opportunity to attack once again. Such enemy wouldn´t be destroyed unless they cut the head of the beast off…and he already knew who was such head.

"Thales…"he muttered. The responsible of the death of his father as well of many others. The one that had been manipulating many in order to achieve his own ambitions. The conflict between them and the children of the Goddess had marked most of Fódlan´s history, but he knew that their time had already passed. No matter what they were they had turned into a poison to the inhabitants of the region, a poison that was menacing to bring all of them to a painful end.

He was still looking at the horizon, when he felt something moving nearby.

"It should be impossible, I haven´t spotted any scouts around" he thought, but he nevertheless unsheathed his weapon as he prepared to descend to the ground.

"Professor, it´s been a long time since the last time we´ve met, but you haven´t changed a bit" greeted him a woman´s voice. "Don´t you remember me? I´m Leonie from the Golden Deer and this sweet girl over here is Lysithea"

"I am a grown up, Leonie, you mustn´t treat me as a child anymore" Lysithea said while flustered.

He couldn´t believe his eyes, both of them were standing in front of him, the rest of the Ashen Wolves looking at both of them, curious. Looking at them he couldn´t avoid smiling. If they were standing like that in front of them, it meant that they weren´t hostile against them, they were here to talk. However, their sudden presence could mean that others could detect the very same place as easily as they had.

"How did you find us?" he asked.

"Are you really making such question after everything that you´ve just left behind? The amount of magic I was feeling was menacing to numb my senses" Lysithea sighed as she casted a fire spell to keep all of them warmer. "Don't worry they won´t see anything from here. I´ve casted a spell to prevent that"

"Well, even someone like me could feel that something was really off, so it must have been something pretty big" Leonie said while relaxing. "To think that after all these years you were to appear here in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the Alliance. You were hiding really well"

"We really hide very well, although that´s something normal since we´ve been used to hiding our whole life" Yuri laughed.

"Can you tell us what happened?"

He started explaining everything that had happened until this moment. He feared that they might not believe him, but they listened to his words in completely silent as he narrated the events of the last days. When he finished, Lysithea was looking at him with a thoughtful look, she was about to talk when…

"Are you telling me that the Sword was alive and was trying to have its revenge? Wow, talking about resentment…but if it was after the culprits of master Jeralt´s death, you should have allowed it and then finish the work"

"And then finished the work?! Have you seen what happened there? Even if that could be the most time efficient solution to finish such menace, half the world would have disappeared because of it. You did the right decision, Professor. Allowing such existence to have it its way would have been far worse. The fact that I still I have a headache because of it it´s a living proof of how menacing it was"

"By the way, aren´t both of you part of the Alliances? Wouldn´t you try to imprison us or something?" asked a surprised Hapi. "No need to do so, though. It must be annoying to take care of prisoners these days"

"Why would I do something like that to the Professor and some former students?" Leonie laughed as it was something impossible to happen. "I´m a mercenary, I´m on the side that pays the most and I don´t have any contract right now that tells me to imprison all of you. Besides, I made a promise" she said as she looked at him. "I made an oath with your father, no matter what could ever happen I would protect you and I´m here to fulfil such oath, although I must admit that five years ago, I had my doubts. I thought that you were a traitor, but back at the battle you allowed us to escape, even if we were hostile to you. My doubts turned into gratitude since them"

"Even if I sided with the Empire"

"Even if you did so, my alliances are to Jeralt not a country. Besides, I´m a mercenary. If I had never believed you, I would probably have turned into a general of the Alliance army, but that is a possibility I discarded a long time ago"

"In my case I´m here because I believe in the cause you are fighting for. After reading the manifest and everything that has happened ever since I´ve come to understand Edelgard´s stance on this matter. If the current system puts the crests before everything else, it is a system that doesn´t deserve to exist anymore. I have no time to see the world change by its own so I must aid to change it.

Besides, I have the suspicion that my past and Edelgard´s are somehow related. I would like to ask her some things about that matter" she said as her sight focused on the fire in front of them. "We should leave this place as soon as possible. Even if my spells are able to hide us well, the army of the Alliance has been reinforced by many talented mages. Heading west should be the best option to us"

"Now that I found a place to get some rest" Hapi complained but she stood up.

"Lysithea is right, the more distance we can put between ourselves and the Alliance armies the better" he said as he stood up. "I´m sorry for abusing of your confidence once again…"

"There is no need to ask for it, Byleth. You only need to provide us with comfortable beds, after all of this ends" Balthus laughed.

"For sure" he nodded. Having such light-hearted conversations in the middle of a war was a blessing that had turned uncommon in recent times.

….

The camp was filled with activity. Patrols were making sure that the enemy scouts didn´t enter their perimeter as they prepare the siege weapons to launch the assault on the greatest bridge of Fódlan. Even though the strange source of magic had disappeared many days ago there was no coming back. The control of the bridge would allow a faster transport of provisions to the frontlines, allowing them to have a control of the commerce in the area. Wars were expensive and even though the Empire was wealthy enough to sustain the campaign, the control of commercial routes was crucial if one was meant to control the possible surplus of the enemy lines.

She was walking in silence through the camp as groups of soldiers were checking their weapons. Some of the soldiers had already faced many battles, but some of them were new recruits. The cost of lives had already forced them to use reserve troops in some areas. Compared to the Alliance, the Empire had a permanent army. Such core was formed with elite units whose training had been supervised by the most respectable generals of the empire, but the rest of the troops consisted on volunteers and those who didn´t have any job and properties, those that were willing to risk their lives because they had nothing.

Compared to this, the Alliance lacked an army of its own, all his forces consisting on the troops that each member of it was willing to lend for the defense of their land. That allowed them to keep the costs at a minimum at times of peace, but was also a sign of fragility, since every member of the alliance had their own priorities.

"But it seems that Claude had changed that as well" she thought. According to many reports, Claude had been able to unify the control of the Alliance army under him. To achieve so he had to convince most leaders of the Alliance and that wasn´t an easy task in a country marked with the obsession with wealth and power. But even under such circumstances he had been able to unify an unstable country, erecting defenses to avoid any possible invasions from both sides of Fódlan. Even if they were rivals, she couldn´t avoid feeling admiration for the political talent of her rival.

A different matter was the army of the Holy Kingdom. The royal army was permanent like the Empire´s, but the different lords battled at the battlefield next to their own soldiers. The search for glory was strong in those lands, but unexpectedly the Holy Kingdom had been taking a cautious stance on the conflict, avoiding to overcommit under all circumstances. Such reality was really disturbing when she knew that the man ruling the Holy Kingdom dreamed on putting her head on a spike.

"Perhaps is the influence of the Church" she wondered as she walked under the cover of the trees. Even if she was alone, she didn´t fear an attack from her enemies, they were in Empire-controlled lands and she was a capable fighter. Walking alone allowed her to reflect on the many events happening around her and keep her mind busy from mundane worries.

The Church of Seiros was the true enemy to the north and the alliance between the Holy Kingdom and the Church was the greatest menace to the Empire in the war. The Church had proclaimed Dimitri the savior of Fódlan and with its influence it was spreading the believe that the Empire´s objective was to destroy the legacy of the Goddess. It wasn´t surprising that she was depicted as a demon in many of the propaganda documents coming from the Church. As a reaction she had adorned her head with a crown resembling the horns of the demons of the ancient texts as a mockery of the lies of the Church. "If they want to see a demon, they´ll have it" although that was always leaving a sour taste in her mouth.

The forest around her was calm, a gentle breeze caressing the branches around. A few miles away the border of the Alliance and the great bridge was awaiting. In a couple of days, the invasion would begin and like that a new chapter of the war. She was confident that they would be able to secure the bridge, even if could proof to be a difficult task. The thing that was worrying her the most was keeping all of them alive.

The Black Eagles Strike Force had been battling together and she had been able to keep all of them alive, but she knew that they could die at any time. Losing someone else was the thing she feared the most after what had happened five years ago.

"Five years had already passed…The flow of time is really merciless" she muttered. Even now she held dear many of the memories of the past, but such warm memories were covered by the pain of losing someone very dear to her.

"Of all people I never imagined he…" The memories were too painful to say aloud. She knew that Hubert had taken a practical approach regarding that matter, but she had never abandoned hope. The fact that his body had never been discovered after their fall was a sign of hope she wasn´t willing to abandon…but the uncertainty was a lacerating pain that had been piercing her heart ever since.

"Now that I think about it, this very same day five years ago…" It was difficult to believe that five years ago, most people were worrying about the clothes they wanted to wear to the Ball that was taking place the following day. That day all of them made the promise to rencounter no matter what.

"No matter what I´ll return here" she recalled her younger self saying to him when she was still trying to hide her feelings from him. Perhaps if she had been bolder back them, the outcome of the monastery battle could have been a bit different.

"My Teacher…no…Byleth, I wish you were here, I wish you could reunite with all of us once again. All of them are waiting for your return. All of them continue battling for the sake of a better future for this land, for a world where we can place our own rules…but we need someone to guide us as you did in the past. I know that it is my duty to take care of all of them, but…I really wish you could be here. Even if it´s a selfish feeling" hearing her own voice in the middle of the forest was somehow relaxing. Even though no one was listening to her words, to her fears and hopes, hearing her voice filling the air was somehow recomforting her. It was a living proof of her own existence. Her existence was the opportunity to achieve a greater future and she wasn´t hesitating about it. After all, such was the path she had decided to place upon her.

Her attention was caught by a large rock in the middle of the forest. Approaching it, she entered a small area where she could clearly see the night sky. The teachings of the Church said that the stars above them were the tears of the Goddess after witnessing the suffering of humanity after each calamity, but she didn´t believe it. Some scholars of the Empire were already discussing about the nature of such elements, but there was no consensus about it.

"Whatever it could be, the sky is truly magnificent. Byleth I truly wish you were here to see the same sky as I do" she said while sighing.

"Yes, it truly is" said a voice behind her that made her heart jump. Shocked, she suddenly stood up as her eyes searched for the source of the voice. There he was, next to one of the old trees smiling at her as if nothing had happened as if he had just gone for a walk and he had just returned.

"B-Byleth…?" she asked in disbelief, afraid that she was just daydreaming in the middle of the forest.

"It´s been a long time, Edelgard" he said as he slowly started approaching her.


	80. Dear memories 懐かしい思い出

**12/24 Ethereal Moon**

"Byleth?" she simply muttered. She couldn´t believe her eyes. Byleth was slowly approaching her with a light smile on his face, her heartbeats heavily resonating in her head. Time didn´t pass on him, he looked exactly like his former self five years ago, when the battle for the control of the monastery had taken place.

"Are you really Byleth?" she asked with the lightest of voices.

"Of course, I am. I´m sorry for making you wait"

"Byleth, where have you been all this time? Do you understand how much I…we suffered because of your disappearance? We searched for you in the hopes of finding you well…and with the fear that something might have happened to you. But after searching for you during weeks the only conclusion we had was that you had just disappeared…as if you had never been there. The pain I´ve felt ever since…" Hearing her words, he stopped in front of her, sorrow on his face.

"I know that I´ve been away for a long time. Believe me, I´ve been fighting all this time to get to this place. When I fell, I was cursed by Rhea and I was trapped in a frozen hell during all these years, drowned in an endless nightmare. The trials I had to endure wanted to crush my soul, my very own existence…but they couldn´t achieve it, since hope never truly abandoned me…hope of seeing all of you again…hope of reuniting with you"

"Trapped in the realm of dreams and nightmares. That certainly sounds like the words of a madman, yet I can see the truth in your eyes. I always believed that I would come to see you again…that you would never abandon us…seeing you now in front of me is truly a blessing, almost as if I was daydreaming" she was saying when she felt something warm. It was his hand, that was caressing her face.

"If I weren´t real, you wouldn´t feel it, right?" he said with a gentle smile. "Edelgard?" Byleth asked surprised as he felt how she placed her face on his chest as she embraced him. He was warm, her senses filling with his very own existence as if she was afraid that he would disappear the moment she looked away.

"Welcome back, Byleth" she muttered as she felt how tears started to form in her eyes. During all these years she had never shredded a single tear, she needed to proof her strength to her nation, but now that she was in front of him, she was feeling powerless as if all these years had never occurred and they were still at the monastery.

"Sorry for making you wait" he whispered in her ear as he gently placed his hand on her head. "You´ve been brave, you have passed through a lot, but if you are standing here right now, it means that it had a purpose"

They were like that for a few minutes, but they didn´t care about the flow of time. For them the time had stopped for a moment, a moment to rest their very own souls after a long journey of hardships. But she eventually relaxed her embrace as he looked at him into the eye. He was there, smiling, his green eyes looking at her as two glooming stars, their serene aura relaxing her.

"Promise me that you will never abandon us again, losing you one more time would be something I would regret to the end of my days"

"Of course, but on one condition"

"Which…" she couldn´t end what she was saying as she felt how their lips met. She closed her eyes as her hands caressed his back. In all these years she had never felt so alive as in that moment.

"I promise you…I´ll never abandon you. We´ll fight together, we´ll overcome many obstacles, we´ll suffer, we´ll wonder about our paths…but in the end we´ll laugh and we´ll live. I promise you that we´ll share the burden of this path, you´ll never be alone again and when all of this ends…I´ll show you the rest of the world, the reality that had been stolen from you all this time. I´ll make sure that every day counts until the dark clouds of the past turn into dust in a life filled with many blessings" he said as he kneeled before her, his lips on her hand.

"No matter what, I´ll be by your side. No matter what I´ll stay. That´s the only truth that matters, the only truth that will ever be"

"Years ago, I thought I would never be able to experience a life of happiness. But even in the middle of darkness you came to my aid, even if I hid many things from you, you still decided to believe in me, not because I was the heir of powerful nation, but because I was Edelgard. Thanks to you, I remain like Edelgard. Perhaps in a world where you weren´t by my side my heart would have turned into ice, only filled with resolution and despair. Perhaps I would have turned into a peerless yet heartless emperor, but because of you I can just simply be Edelgard. I owe you many things" she said as she helped him stand up again. "You were the first one to treat me as an equal, to see me not as a tool but as a human being, not as a lord but as someone you could open the heart with. Not even an entire lifetime would be able to pay for the many things you have done to me"

"In that case, let´s make every day count, from now on" he said as he embraced her, she closed her eyes filling her senses with his existence. For a moment she was able to forget about her duties. Perhaps she was being selfish, but it didn´t matter. At this moment she was happy with no worries that could torment her, with no dangers that could threaten her life. If time could just stop for the rest of eternity…

…

"In the end, you fulfilled the promise you made with us five years ago. Those memories are so fresh in my mind, yet 5 years have already passed since then. The world around us have changed too, the only being that seems to be the same is you. Is this the power of divinity?" she asked as she placed her hand on his hair.

"It might be" he admitted. All of his students have changed, such was the nature of time. Her hair roots have turned completely white, probably because of the nature of her dual crests. "However, instead of worrying about an uncertain future let´s enjoy the time that has been provided to us. There are many things that I want to do with you by my side, even this war will come to an end. When I decided to side with you, I already knew which path I was following, a path of many risks and suffering but the one I was willingly choosing. I regret nothing about making this decision"

"The flame of hope in your eyes…forgive me for having doubts even at this moment. You have my eternal gratitude. No matter the obstacles, we´ll overcome them…

"Together" he said with a smile as he took her hand.

"The rest of the members of the Black Eagle Strike Force have been waiting for your safe return. It is time to regroup with them as we used to do at the monastery" she said as she offered her arm to him.

"Yes, it´s been a long time, I wonder how much they have changed"

….

"Professor?!" asked a surprised Dorothea.

"Where have you been hiding, Professor? I was searching under every single rock, but I couldn´t find you. You must be really good at hiding" Caspar complained.

"Were you really doing something like that, how annoying you are at times. Although considering the unusual capabilities of our Professor it could be a possibility. Professor have you been sleeping under a rock or something like that as of lately?"

"How can you say something and contradict yourself at the same time, Linhardt" Ferdinand sighed. "Instead of focusing on such things you should just be glad that the Professor has returned with us. I have trained very hard during all these years; I am looking forward on training with you again. Having you here, I cannot ask for more" Ferdinand said with a wide smile.

"The spirits must have served you well, I always had hope in meeting you again, Professor. With you here again, there is nothing that can really stop us" Petra said as she patted Bernadetta in the back.

"P-Professor! I´ve been giving my best too! Look at me, I´m not hiding anymore" Bernadetta said with a shy smile.

"This really looks like the old times of the monastery" Mercedes said. She was a few meters apart from them, but she was genuinely smiling when she noticed the group behind him. "More students have come with you as well, you must be tired, right?"

"A good meal would do wonders to me" Balthus grinned while patting his belly.

"A bed in my case" said a half asleep Hapi.

"I´ll accompany all of you then" Mercedes said as she guided the group outside, after a good night of rest he knew that there would be plenty of things they would want to share with the rest of his students. "Although I´m a teacher no more" he thought as he looked at them, but he didn´t mind that they would consider him their Professor.

"You seem to have caused quite a sensation, Professor" Hubert laughed, his eyes scanning him as he was trying to pierce through his very own soul. "Five years have already passed since the last time we were together, yet you have not changed a bit"

"You must tell me your secret someday, Professor" Dorothea giggled. "What Hubert is trying to say is that he is happy to see you as well, right?"

"You have just taken the words out of my mouth, Dorothea" Hubert said with a light nod. "Having the Professor here will be quite an asset to our plans…but I must admit that I feel happiness on a personal level as well. After all this time I have come to the conclusion that you are a positive influence to all of us"

"Hubert, that´s like saying that water is wet, you really like making long phrases" Caspar laughed.

"Well, as you can see all of them have been waiting for your safe return and they are pleased to see you well. The Black Eagle Strike Force has been battling together all this time in the hopes of seeing you again. Not even one of our members have opted to leave us in this war"

"All of them? Edelgard why don´t you just admit that you are the happiest of us all? Your face speaks volumes"

As a reaction to Caspar´s words, Edelgard´s cheek turned red, as she tried to avoid his gaze.

"You were really gloomy at times, compared to now it´s just day and night difference"

"I have to agree with Caspar on this matter, your ranges of emotions have greatly increased" Linhardt commented.

"Edie, you are such a sweetie, you should see yourself on a mirror right now. A bit of color on your face really suits you"

"W-Well, we should put an end to this conversation for now, as you know we are at war" Edelgard said as she coughed, although her face was still really red.

"Edelgard is right about this matter. We are at a crucial state of the war. A few miles away from here the border of the Leicester Alliance is waiting for us" Ferdinand said as they reassumed their military plans.

…

"What do we have here?" asked a metallic voice. He didn´t need to look back to know who was standing behind him.

"I haven´t seen you in a while, Jeritza"

"For years I´ve been waiting for you, for the opportunity of having a mortal dance once again. My existence has been too boring since you disappeared. Kill or be killed, that´s the only thing that matters on this world. I want to…"

"Jeritza, remember your vows" Edelgard said, her voice was soft but firm.

"I haven´t forgotten. I´ll resist this urge I have until your enemies are defeated, but when this war ends, I want to have another duel with you, one where our lives will be at stake"

"Why are you so obsessed with fighting and death?" Such distorted vision of the world was something beyond his current comprehension, but he suspected that he wasn´t like that since the beginning.

"Now that all of us have exchanged kind words with each other it is time to focus on the task ahead, am I mistaken, Lady Edelgard?" Hubert said as he looked at Edelgard.

"As you must have noticed by now, the Imperial army is preparing to attack the Leicester Alliance. Claude has been able to join all the forces of the Alliance into a common army while moving troops from the eastern borders to the south and west"

"Such move is highly worrying since it means that we will be facing the veterans of the Alliance. Most of them will be well-trained soldiers capable of being a threat to our advance"

"The access to the bridge will be heavily guarded. It is highly probable that they will try to bottleneck us. Even if our numbers are greater, they could slow down us considerably with such tactic"

"In that case we´ll need to overcome their defensive lines with a decisive strike" he said as he observed the structure of the bridge. "There are two paths, the main bridge and an adjacent fortress. If we can take control of the garrisons in the middle of the main bridge before the troops in the fortress try to counterattack, we´ll have enough troops on the bridge and the might of numbers will decide the battle"

"However, until then we will be under enemy fire from both sides. Even if we overcome the first defensive lines, we´ll suffer heavy loses" Hubert said

"It´s true, in that case we´ll need a distraction"

"We have siege weapons and catapults. We could focus the fire on the fortress while our troops try to advance. Besides, I´ve thought about something else" she said as she pointed to their side of the map.

"Are these things boats?"

"Exactly. Not enough to carry our main forces but enough to cause a great disruption in the rearguard. The currents of this area are dangerous, but the low temperatures have reduced the flow of the river. This strategy couldn´t work in spring, but right now, it could allow us to have an advantage"

"Any information on the Alliance generals that might be guarding the bridge"

"Judith, she is one of the most famous generals of the Leicester Alliance. She will be a tough nut to crack. She is a charismatic leader and she is loyal to Claude. However, if we are able to defeat her, the troops will probably lose their will to fight. She has mastered the rapier, so a close combat fight will be certainly dangerous"

"You can leave that to me" he said. "How about we take her prisoner? A general like that will be of great value"

"Probably so, but I highly doubt that she will ever agree to such terms. According to the information I have, she is a warrior at core and most warriors will rather die than have to withstand the shame of imprisonment" Hubert chuckled. "She is one of the pillars of the Alliance. If she dies in battle, she will be glorified by many as the fight continues, although it seems that she has a great faith in the strategy of Claude. If he has something different prepared for her it is unknown to me"

"What about the reserve forces to the other side of the river? As I approached this place, we could spot many military camps. There are plenty of soldiers that could arrive at any moment while we are at battle"

"Claude´s strategy for now has been highly defensive. He has only moved his forces waiting for an attack, but the generals guiding such forces do not have the same qualities as Judith. If she falls, they will probably retreat. Those forces will take some hours to arrive. They will not be able to attack us unless they completely stop us at the bridge"

"But that is really strange. Why placing some other troops miles away when they could move them next to the areas surrounding the bridge? Doesn´t sound it strange?" he said as he took a closer look to the map. Indeed, it was. This wasn´t a surprise attack against the great bridge. It was clear that to this side of the bank of the river the armies were preparing to launch an assault, yet some of the troops were miles away of the place where they were supposed to be.

"Proceed with caution is the only thing we can do, if we postpone the assault just to make sure of the true intentions of our enemy, we´ll be losing a valuable time that they can use against us. Claude has already prepared his strategy and so we have. Tomorrow we´ll see which side was correct on their assumptions. The objective will be to secure the bridge so we can bring enough provisions, if we can keep it, the advance through the Alliance territory should be easier"

"Besides, it seems like the Professor has attracted some of their armies to the middle of the Alliance, they might think that we are already there, poor souls"

"However, underestimating our enemy would be reckless, we must remember that we´ll be fighting on two fronts at the same time. In the following days, news about our attack will certainly come to the ears of the Kingdom and the Church and they might move its armies south. One of them had already been spotted approaching the border, the moment they realize our attack to the Alliance they´ll increase their pressure on the other side"

"If that´s the case, the campaign to conquest the Alliance must be short. We´ll need to assault the capital as soon as possible, otherwise we could find us in a difficult situation"

"Hopefully so. Luckily, the roads of the Alliance are well-maintained and more so in this time of war. That will allow us a quick approach to the north, but those plans must wait. First of all, we have to secure the land to the other side of this river" Edelgard said as she stood up. "Relax your minds and take plenty of rest, tomorrow we´ll be needing the best of all of you. A tired mind or body could be the difference between life and death".

"Your words are always wise, Lady Edelgard" Hubert said as he bowed. "You have already heard the Emperor, prepare your minds and bodies for battle, the fate of this battle will be decided tomorrow"

"The meeting is over, take some rest"

One by one they started to leave Edelgard´s tent. He was about to leave as well, but looking at her he knew that she wanted him to stay for a bit longer.

"Is there something bothering your mind?"

"I must admit that even now, after countless battles, I still feel uneasy the day prior to a battle. No matter how many strategies you prepare beforehand, something can always go wrong, and the main consequence is the death of many" she sighed as her eyes looked at the map before her.

"That´s the nature of the battlefield, you must always be prepared for the worst"

"The songs of this land really praise the battles of old, but behind each song there are many corpses and tears behind. I know that a war without casualties is something irreal, but I think that the sacrifices of those left behind must be remembered as well. If someday a song is composed based on this war, I want it to acknowledge the costs of it as well. History books only tell us about the important figures that battled or died in the past. For history the death of many is only a number to make the reader think about the size of the armies, but there is more to it"

"If some of your generals hear you, they would think that you have lost the will of fighting"

"Not at all, I´ll fight until the end. With you I can be completely honest, no matter what, although you must apologize me, recently I can only think about war" Edelgard sighed as she put her crown on her lap. The hornlike crown was really unique, catching his attention.

"Why did you choose such design?"

"You must be wondering because of the horns. Well, the Church demonizes me in their writings and I have decided to wear it as a sign of pride not of weakness. Horns represent demons for many, but the horn by itself isn´t something necessarily evil. Many animals have it and aren´t dangerous at all, and the horn is also described as a sign of wealth in some tales. In the end, we see what we want to and we create our own reality based on our own believes. You had a similar title as well, the Ashen Demon" she said as she served him some wine. The smell made him recall the forests to the south of Fódlan. "It is a wine from the Empire, the best ones are to the far west of the Adrestian Empire, an area that hasn´t suffered the effects of war"

"Although it wasn´t a title that I chose by myself, actually my mercenary group chose it when they saw me battling in the battlefield"

"What happened to your mercenary group?"

"They disbanded although some of them headed south. Perhaps they aren´t in Fódlan anymore. A mercenary is as free as the wind, after all"

"A wind of bad omens, some would say, since they are always after battles"

"Am I a bad omen to you?" he joked as he took a seat. The tent was wide, yet practical but his glimpse was caught instantly by an axe. Looking at its golden color, he realized what he had in front of him.

"Never, you truly have been a light in my path. Without you, I wonder how I would view the world around me. In a world without an equal I could lose contact with reality and turn into a ruthless ruler…"

"Edelgard"

"Yes?"

"I have a question to make to you"

"Sure, I trust you, you are free to ask anything you want"

"Do the rest of them know about us? Or do you want to keep it a secret?"

"I-I haven´t said anything about us…" Edelgard said while flustering, her face getting a dangerous crimson red. "It´s not something you would normally say given the circumstances, although some of them suspect, mostly Dorothea. She really was teasing me since the times of the monastery"

"She really has a good eye on such matters" he smiled. "Sorry for having pressured you, I just was curious about it. It´s ok to me, if you want to keep it like this, I understand that war has a priority…and I don´t want Hubert to kill me during my sleep"

"You really have changed. When we first met, such phrase wouldn´t have sounded as a joke as you do now. I´m happy to know that you have awakened many emotions since our paths first met" she said as she approached him. He could feel her sweet fragrance approaching, his eyes drowning in her.

"When everything comes to an end, I want to take my time to walk with you through the Imperial garden, do you remember last time?"

"You really left me confused back then, I wondered if what I felt on my lips was the reality or just an illusion" he said as he recalled the events of that night in the past.

"It was my way to say farewell to my feelings. Back then I was afraid of what you would think about me, that you would turn into my enemy even it that was the thing I feared the most…but now it´s different" she said as she kissed him gently on the lips. "Now, there is only hope and gratitude…thanks to you I didn´t abandon my feelings. Tomorrow we´ll be a difficult day, but we´ll overcome it as we have always done. Please, take some rest" she said as she lightly caressed his hand.

"Good night, Edelgard" he said as he left her tent and headed to the one that was prepared for him. The wind was blowing outside, its cold making some of the soldiers outside shiver, but he didn´t feel the cold. For him, the world had just turned in a warmer place, the sweet fragrance still resonating inside him. Looking at the sky he wondered if his father had felt like him in the past, when he met his mother. "I´ll protect that smile" he thought as he continued his path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it´s almost a year since I first originally published this story. Time really passes fast. It has been a challenging year, with hardships and blessings. Writing this story truly feels like a trip to the unknown. Time wise it can be demanding at times since as a non-native speaker I have to recheck everything I do (yes, I reread everything I write), but I don´t really regret it. I think that is a really unique experience. Anyway, I wish all of you a good day :)


	81. An artist´s wish　絵師の願望

"Finally, the day has come" Edelgard muttered next to him. Soldiers were leaving their tents, searching for their weapons and extinguishing fires as the sound of battle horns filled the air around them. The siege weapons that had been finished by now had already started to move, enormous armored oxen moving them while some mages were preparing their magic tomes while talking with each other. He was used to such situation, the need to make a last check to everything before going to battle, the small talk with comrades that might not survive and the increasing feeling that they were being observed to the other side of the battlefield. Such was the atmosphere in the current camp.

"Are you nervous?" he asked as he checked the weapons that he was going to bring to the battlefield, a pair of silver swords. On his back was the Sword of the Creator, but he wasn´t planning to use it. He had come to distrust the weapon, even though it appeared to be an emptied vessel.

"Of course, I am. No matter how much time we spend developing different strategies, something that we haven´t taken into account could take place. This will be the first real contact between the armies of the Empire and the Alliance. Until now only small acts of sabotage have taken place, but now a real conflict will start between both of us. We´ll need to finish this campaign quickly before the Holy Kingdom and the Church have an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. It is a risky bet, but I´m confident that we´ll overcome the difficulties that are awaiting us"

"The distraction you plan to do with the boats is really interesting. If they separate forces to counterattack our advance through the river their attention on the main forces will be diluted. However, the risk of being trapped in a bottleneck is still too real. The Leicester Alliance is specialized in the use of bows, they will probably greet us with a rain of arrows"

"Let them use their bows against our shields, our heavy units will take most of the impacts as we advance and when our mages get closer, they will greet them back" Edelgard said with a confident look as she observed the troops. He could see the Imperial sigil of the Adrestian Empire in some of the flags among them as the sound of war drums resonated in his ears.

…..

"The great bridge was developed hundreds of years ago to unite two great lands. Thanks to it, commerce flourished and many treaties and alliances were born. The conquest of the bridge will mark the beginning of the end of this war. The Alliance Army won´t stop us and in a moon we´ll be at the Alliance´s heart. Come with me, fight and turn into reality what we have been fighting for!" she shouted to her troops. Among them she could see the Black Eagles Strike Forces. She had battled alongside them during years, but every time they went to battle, she made sure that all of them were fine. Looking at their faces, she could see that some of them were a bit nervous, but she was as well. However, she couldn´t see any fear on their faces. With a quick nod in their direction, she approached the soldiers that were carrying her weapons of choice for the current offensive; a heavy shield, a pair of axes and the relic that had been granted to her. Touching the relic, she could sense an electrifying feeling run through her body. She knew the power of such relic since she had already used it in battle

The great bridge was in front of them, waiting for them as they approached under the enemy fire. Arrows were fired at them, but the heavy shields of the vanguard were diminishing the losses they were suffering while the archers of their side fired back under the cover of the armored warriors. To the west, the first boats were starting to cross the river, the attention of the fortress on them.

"Let´s see what is your strategy to win this battle, Claude" she thought as she used her own shield to stop some of the arrows. The battle for the control of the great bridge had already begun.

….

The defenses of the Alliance were strong, their armies having placed many barriers on the bridge while their infantry units were trying to slow them down while the archers were trying to kill them.

He was advancing through the main area when he felt an arrow coming to them. Cutting it in half, he could see that the archer was standing a few meters away from me, his light green hair and glasses making him realize who was standing in front of him.

"Ignatz…"

"Don´t talk with me, lapdog of the Empire!" Ignatz shouted, an intense anger released from his eyes. "Why are you siding with the enemy, you of all people! It´s something that to this day I´m unable to understand" he said as he released another arrow.

"Calm down, I´m not your enemy Ignatz, you are misjudging things. It´s true that I´m fighting for the Empire, but you don´t know the reasons why I´m doing it!"

"It´s obvious! The Empire has always longed to reunite the whole of Fódlan under its command. The Emperor just wants to take the whole of Fódlan under her control. And you are her right hand in all this process! Don´t you have shame? How could you betray the Church, the monastery? I thought that you would be fighting by our side, why…why?"

"Ignatz, you are confusing many things. If you had seen…"

"I refuse to hear any word coming from you. Professor…I´ll kill you here and now" Ignatz said as he aimed his bow at him while he was quickly approaching him. His technique with the bow was something to admire. He had improved since the first time they had met. As he avoided the arrows aimed at him, he couldn´t avoid feeling proud yet sad about their situation.

He was just a couple of meters away from him as he used his last arrow against him, he was trying to prepare his bow again, but he was already on him. He tried to defend himself with a small dagger, but he had the strength on his side. Around them the Imperial troops were advancing, the group of archers from the Leicester Alliance starting to disband. Using a magic spell, he made Ignatz fell unconscious. He knew he was angered with him, but he wanted to have at least a chance to talk with him before his former student made a decision about his own fate.

They had already advanced through the middle of the bridge, but the battle was far from over. The sound of a war horn made him realize that some of the Leicester Alliance´s reinforcements have already arrived. Looking to the other side of the bridge he could see new flags of the Leicester Alliance, the disbanded troops reuniting under the new banners.

"Judith is over there" Edelgard said as she approached him. Her shield had the marks of many attacks and some of them had already impacted on her sturdy armor, but fortunately enough she wasn´t injured.

"If we defeat her, the rest of the troops will lose their morale. We need to keep pushing them, the worst part has already ended"

"Sure, but we mustn´t let our guard down" In front of them, the troops of the Leicester Alliance had already reorganized, their cavalry quickly approaching them as the archers were preparing their barriers to defend themselves.

"Shields!" Edelgard´s voice roared, preparing her own shield as their heavy infantry raised their shields with their two arms while their lancers were preparing their weapons behind the giant iron walls. Behind them, the mages were preparing their spells as well, the power of magic accumulating in the air. The mass of knights was already on them, their weapons ready to crush them when they impacted with their frontline. In the distance she could see the famous general of the Leicester Alliance, she was in the middle of the enemy army, shouting commands as her troops charged at them like a furious wave impacting into the rocks of the coast.

Using her strength, she was able to defeat the enemies that were trying to attack her as she approached the enemy general. It didn´t take much time until the pride of the Leicester Alliance approached her, ready for combat.

"Huh, so you the Emperor of the Adrestian Empire. The Empire must be short in troops if the Emperor is in the frontlines" Judith, said. She had a smile on her face, but her eyes were cautious and calculating. They were the eyes of a veteran of the battlefield, observing every movement, every opportunity to strike, every weakness.

"An Emperor that hides behind the troops would be a sign of weakness I cannot afford. My ideals are strong and such ideals are the source of inspiration to the rest of the troops. The same cannot be said about your Lord, I guess"

"I´m not going to fall under such low effort provocation. It´s true that the little boy isn´t quite fond of the battlefield, but his ideals have completely convinced me…But I must admit that you have the guts, little girl. May I know your name"

"My name is Edelgard, Emperor of the Adrestian Empire and I´m willing to change this world with my actions. The time of standing still is gone for good"

"That would have been the wisest option, but I guess that not everyone is so talented like the little boy. Your ideals will come to an end here. This will be the day that the Leicester defeated the Imperial army and with it the ambitions of its emperor" Judith said as she quickly moved her rapier. The movement was fast as the wind, but it met her shield.

"She is strong" she thought as she tried to counterattack with her axe, but she simply jumped back, eluding her reach.

"You move really fast, even though you are covered in heavy armor"

"I have been wearing heavy equipment since I have the use of memory. I must admit that you are quite fit as well, how about you come a bit closer?"

"To be crushed by that giant axe of yours? No thanks. I prefer being alive, I´ll only attack when I see an opportunity" she said as her legs suddenly moved, her rapier following her sight as she tried to hit her in the neck, but her reflexes were fast enough to avoid the piercing attack. Around them, the battle continued, the forces of the Leicester Alliance and Empire in a mortal embrace.

Judith was keeping herself out of reach of her axe as she hit her on the shield and armor. Her armor was sturdy enough, but she knew that a little mistake could mean the difference between life and death. Her axe was making the ground tremble with each impact, the road beneath them crumbling apart with her potent blows as Judith tried to avoid her attacks.

"What kind of power you have, little girl? I must admit that I´ve never seen something like that"

"This is the power that has been conferred to me and it is a power that I will use to create a better world"

"Ignoring the will of others? That sounds like a selfish world which I´m not interested in taking part" she said as she unsheathed another rapier. "Until now you have been resisting my attacks with just one rapier. I must admit that that is something to recognize. However, now I´ll be serious with you. The world you are fighting for will never turn into reality. Your world is just an ideal that will remain an unfinished dream" Judith simply said as her blades tried to hit the joints of her armor, but she wasn´t the only one with a hidden trick. The moment she approached she was welcomed by an electric discharge coming from her axe. Judith jumped back to avoid the rest of the attack, but one of her arms was already injured, blood slowly flowing from the open wounds.

"Magic, as someone would expect from the Empire. You won´t be able to face me in a fair combat without these little tricks. Magic empoisons the world of fighting, its users undeserving of any respect"

"Underestimating the possibilities of magic isn´t a wise thing to do" she said as she approached her. She had infused one of her axes with the power of lightning, its blade shining with fury. She was tempted to use her own relic, but using all her assets on the first battle could be a waste of resources. Around them the forces of the Leicester Alliance were still fighting, but the frontline was starting to crumble. In the river, dozens of small boats were arriving to the other side of the shore, the fighting expanding through all kind of terrains. She wasn't the only one realizing the battle situation.

"Tsk, the situation is getting worse than expected" Judith muttered as she looked at her. "But if you think that this battle will be the ending of the war, you are a fool!" she shouted as she approached her with the speed of lightning. Her axe met the rapier as a brutal discharge was released from within. She felt a slight pain as she released the full power of the magic stored in the axe, throwing the mighty general to the ground. Looking at her armor she could see a fragment of one of the rapiers piercing it, a small flower of blood starting to spread, but the injury wasn´t life threatening, her heavy armor saving her life. The same couldn´t be said about Judith, she was a few meters in front of her, a small pool of blood starting to form beneath her. The smell of burned flesh was filling her nose as she approached the body of the general.

"I´m not…done yet" Judith muttered as she used her broken rapier to stand up. "I´m a general of the Alliance, I´ll fight to my last breath"

"With your heavy injuries? The battle is over, you overcommitted and you paid the price for it. It would be wise to surrender, given the circumstances"

"You might be right; in normal circumstances this battle will be lost for good. The little boy told me to run away if the defeat was inevitable, but before leaving I needed to make some time, time so all of you tried to reach the other side of this great river"

"What do you mean?"

"You´ll soon understand" Judith said with a smile covered in blood. It wasn´t a smile filled with despair, but a smile filled with resolution, the smile of a warrior that hasn´t given up, the pride of a true warrior.

…

"Victory is on our side" he thought. The frontline of the Leicester Alliance was crumbling and he could see that Judith was heavily wounded. To the other side of the river some of their soldiers were starting to attack the rearguard at the bridge. If the Leicester Alliance didn´t run away, given the circumstances they would lose many soldiers. However, there was still something that was bothering his mind. Many divisions of the Leicester Alliance were miles away from the battlefield, standing idle as if they weren´t willing to assist the troops at the bridge. Were they really confident that the troops at the bridge would be enough to stop the invasion? Was it just a miscalculation?

The bridge was filled with many small fortifications, weapons and heavy barrels placed in them. The Leicester had fully prepared to face an invasion, the loses they were suffering the living proof of it. He was advancing when he felt something behind him. Avoiding the arrow in the last second, he could see that Ignatz had surprisingly recovered from his unconsciousness, his eyes still filled with anger.

He was preparing to fire again, when an armored soldier nearby, without any visible heralds, pushed him to the ground.

"Ignatz!" roared a voice he hadn´t heard in years.

"Raphael? What are you doing here? Are you allied with the enemy?" Ignatz said, his eyes filled with distrust. Even though he had always been on good terms with Raphael, he appeared to be unable to trust him.

"What the hell are you saying? I´m just here to pick you up from this mess. You have changed after all these years, Ignatz. You have turned into a harsher man. Where is the sweet boy that enjoy his time drawing things while I was eating some sticks"?

"That boy is death, now I´m a man and I´m defending the Alliance from its invaders. You preferred to not take part in the war, even though of everything that had happened, why now would you come here, to the middle of the battlefield?"

"To take you away from this, you are like family to me. I´ve been protecting my sister all this time, but losing you in a silly war would something I would regret for the rest of my life" he said as he noticed Byleth. "Professor, help me convince him. I know you are a good man, you´ll let him leave, right?"

Hubert, which was next to him, was about to say something, but he interrupted him with his hand. "I told you I wanted to have some time to talk to you. You are taking some things for granted, but killing my former students it´s not something that I would willfully do"

"I tried to kill you, you should hate me because of that. Does it mean that I´m such insignificant being that you don´t really care about my attacks? Am I that weak?"

"Ignatz…"

"Silence! I know deep within me I don´t have the qualities to be a great warrior. Even though I was trying to kill you right now, you didn´t consider me a menace. You were my Professor and you taught me many things, but if I let you pass it would mean the end of many things, some of them part of what I am…The monastery was a place of great memories to me, but it was ravaged by the flames of war, a war that you are supporting right now. That day I promised myself that no matter what I will fight against the Empire…even if that meant sacrificing my life" Ignatz continued his eyes calm yet filled with determination. "During all these years I´ve been wondering what I wanted to do with my life. My real passion was to be a painter, not a knight, but through war I´ve come to understand many things and now I know what I want to be…

Professor, I want to be a hero and this bridge will be my final drawing, a beautiful dawn" he said as he quickly put an arrow on his bow, which ignited the moment in came in contact with its surface.

Out of reflexes he erected a magic barrier as Raphael tried to stop his former companion.

"NO!"

But it was already late as the arrow pierced one of the barrels.

"Fire" was the only thing that came to his mind as he saw the world around him devoured by flames. The cries of those engulfed in fires were piercing his ears as debris fell on the ground, among large blocks of parts of the bridge.

"The bridge is falling apart" he realized as he checked behind him. His students had fallen on the ground but were still breathing thanks to the magic barrier he had erected out of instinct, but they were covered in dust and some of them were breathing with difficulty. He was trying to approach them when he felt how the ground beneath him was trembling violently.

"Retreat! The bridge is about to collapse!" he shouted as he jumped to avoid falling to the river. Flames were appearing everywhere as large rocks were falling into the river, and with them many soldiers. The frontlines had received the worst of the impact, but the forces of the Alliance had faced a similar fate.

The following moments were filled with confusion many soldiers trying to save their lives running to the entrances of the bridge. Suddenly the heralds and nations were insignificant, surviving was the only thing that mattered to those soldiers that were trying to get away from a living hell.

"Evacuate the bridge!" shouted a voice as he ran to the place where Edelgard had been fighting against the general of the Leicester Army. Advancing through the bridge was proving to be difficult, the floor beneath him coming apart, the sounds of flames and sissing water even stronger.

He found her coughing, but alive. Embracing her he made sure that she didn´t have any injuries.

"Can you stand by your own?"

"Y-Yes" she coughed as they started advancing.

"We need to leave this place before it completely crumbles" The bridge was a complete chaos, those who had survived the initial blast were trying to reach one of the sides of the river. He could hear the sound of war horns behind him. Looking back, he could see that new troops of the Leicester Alliance had arrived to make a short work of those imperial troops that had chosen to go to the Alliance´s side of the river.

"That´s why they were away from this mess, they were waiting their opportunity to counterattack" he thought as the bridge violently trembled again. Great fissures were appearing on the pillars under the bridge. The fire and the explosions that were still happening were attacking the structure of the bridge. The time they had to escape was too limited. The smoke was dense but he could see the other side of the river, even though there was still a considerable distance he could see the members of the Black Eagles Strike Force, injured but somehow alive.

"Just a bit more" he thought when the floor beneath him collapsed. He was about to fall to the river when he felt her hand.

"That was close" Edelgard muttered as she helped him to stand up again. He was feeling a sharp pain in one of his legs, but now it wasn´t the time to check possible wounds. Their time was running out after all.

With their last energies they arrived to the Empire controlled area of the river. At the same time, a thunderous sound reverbed behind them as if the bridge was crying out of pain as the central pillars collapsed, incapable of resisting the giant mass over them. They fell into the water as giants that had been stroked down by lightning, flames and people falling with them as the rest of the structure started to collapse as well. In a few seconds, the entire structure was collapsing into the river, giant waves hitting the shores as a consequence of the fall of the ancient giants of stone.

"The bridge…"

"It´s no more" he said, not focused on the muttering voice but on the disaster before him. The most ancient bridge of the entire Fódlan had met its end in a violent explosion, the head of their forces as well as a part of the Leicester Alliance buried with it.

"An interesting strategy, with it, the main entrance to the Alliance had been destroyed, but the battle is far from won" Hubert said as he looked to the other shore. Some of the ships that had been deployed as a bait had successfully arrived to the other side, attacking the remaining forces of the Alliance from the rearguard. "Right now, the Alliance has the advantage with its reinforcements but if we send flying troops to the other side, we´ll be able to keep the pressure"

"Hubert is right, their side has suffered loses as well since many of the troops were still on the bridge. This is not the time to lose our fighting will. The enemy has already showed its cards, now it is the time that we do the same" Edelgard´s eyes weren´t filled with despair but with resolution. There were many things that he will need to confront, but all of them after their current battle had ended. Looking at the ruins of the greatest bridge of Fódlan he couldn´t avoid remembering his words.

"The last drawing of a painter…a beautiful dawn, yet it seems like a desolated sunset"


	82. A warrior´s pride 武者の誇り

"The fight continues, Claude has showed up us his cards, it is time for us to hit back" Edelgard said as the troops awaiting under the cover of the forest started to approach their side of the river. Among them, he could see many flying units.

"The archers on the bridge were the main reason I was keeping our flying troops waiting, but now with the bridge destroyed and with most of the archers gone it is our opportunity to strike back. Petra, lead the spearhead towards the troops of the Alliance to the other side of the shore. Those who aren´t able to fly, try to get behind those who can. Linhardt, Lysithea, Hapi could you use your warping abilities to send some of our troops immediately to the other side?"

"Not the entire army, but I´m confident I can send some troops to the other side" Lysithea said as she started canalizing magic.

"Opposing your command would be more annoying than doing nothing, but don´t blame me if my reach is shorter compared to hers" Linhardt sighed.

"I´ll do what I can, but don´t pressure me too much with it"

"Thank you, everyone!" Edelgard nodded as the atmosphere started to charge with magic. "Soldiers! Prepare the remaining boats. Imperial troops, the main bridge has been destroyed, we´ll need to prepare auxiliar ones! Start to prepare them so by the end of this day we can get some way to allow our main forces to travel to the other side of the battlefield"

…..

"We got a good hit against the fangs of the Empire, but the cost was high" she thought as she stood up again after the giant explosion. Her forces had been able to pull her out of the burning mesh. The use of elixirs had probably saved her life, but she still could feel the burns on her arms after the battle against the little Emperor. "She has a surprising strength, despite her height".

She had to admit that she thought that the Emperor would be an arrogant being that could be taken down with a good aimed hit, but she hadn´t been able to overcome her. Underestimating an enemy was a thing that younger warriors did, so it was a bit embarrassing that she had committed the same mistake. "I guess that the little boy was correct about his assumptions" she thought as her troops guided her to one of the fastest horses of the Leicester Alliance.

The plan of the bridge had been a risky bet. Placing many explosives in the bridge in the hopes of getting a chunk of the Empire army and at the same time blocking the main entrance to the Alliance was a plan that no other general could have imagined. Such proposal had even shocked herself, but as the new ruler of the Alliance, she had decided to support Claude´s plans to the bitter end.

"Even if that means a retreat from the battlefield" she muttered with a sore taste in her mouth. That was betraying her own principles, but Claude had made her sworn that no matter the situation, after achieving the main objective she had to retreat.

"You are the greatest hope of the Alliance. You´ll hit directly into the throat of the Empire and while it howls, they will be unable to find you, since you´ll be already gone. As long as you stay alive, this Alliance will have a chance"

Claude´s words were wise, but she wasn´t the only hero that the Alliance could use. Goneril was another great house that was supporting Claude´s house while he was keeping in order the complicated alliances between the different factions. The fact that someone so young was capable of thinking so ahead was really inspiring.

Around them the small forests were alternating with lonely hills as the fires of war were left behind.

"Commander, what direction should we follow?" said one of the men of his personal guard.

"We´ll head to the first forts to the north, then we´ll prepare the awaiting divisions to launch a counterattack"

They were already in a secured area, but the enemy was still close. If she could arrive to the next defense line, they could drag the fight down even longer. Claude needed all the time he could obtain to prepare an ultimate attack to tear the Imperial forces apart…and her role was to put the maximum pressure on them until he was ready.

"They are chasing us!" the shout of one of her soldiers made her look back. They were in the skies. A group of wyverns and pegasi flying towards them.

"Anyone with a bow, shot at them, but keep moving!" she shouted as she whistled. Claude has granted her some weird devices. It was about time to check if they were effective enough.

Suddenly the sound of an explosion reverbed in the air as a heavy sphere of iron pierced through the sky. It hit nothing, but the mounts of their enemies were surprised and confused by the unexpected projectile.

"Shoot at the same time, at least one of them should hit them!" she shouted, the moment she did, the thunderous sound extended through the until now silent land. The projectiles were the size of a head. Only a handful of them were able to hit the flying enemies, but the disruption of the enemy formation allowed their archers to score some free hits, the number of casualties of the enemy side increasing.

But it wasn´t enough. The gift from Claude was too costly in terms of time to be able to attack again, its cadence of fire hilariously low compared to a well-trained archer and the wyverns and the Pegasi behind them were coming even closer. At this rate it was obvious that they would be unable to arrive to the forts ahead before they had to face them in battle.

"Tsk, there is no other option" she thought. They were coming from her, they wanted her head for what had happened, but that could be an opportunity to prepare the grounds for the collapse of the invasion. "You, take this" she said as she threw at the captain of her guard a small bag. "Inside of it there is a safe conduct. Head to the west and never stop until you arrive to Galatea, then show them the letter within"

"But…"

"It is my command, soldier. Fulfill your duty, before this land is completely occupied. I won´t be leaving this world without giving a good fight" she said as she deviated her course. The lonely rider kept riding in the same direction while the others followed her.

"That hill will be suitable enough for what we´ll be doing" It was a lonely hill in the middle of a small forested area. A suitable place for the last act of her life. Now, the only thing she could do was to wait.

…..

"So, you have finally decided to surrender?"

"I am a commander of the Leicester Alliance. Surrendering to you would be a betrayal of my principles" she said as she looked at the enemy approaching the hill. They weren´t a numerous group but so they were. The ones that caught her attention the most were the Emperor and a silent knight with green eyes and hair. "This must be the Professor; Claude has been telling me about" she thought. The only important information about him to her was that he was a capable fighter and the wielder of the Sword of the Creator. Bringing him down could be a decisive strike, but she wasn´t completely recovered.

"I must recognize your insistence. Even with the fastest horses of the Alliances you were capable of catching us"

"If you cannot run you can just fly. Your army fought well, your strategy was brilliant, but the first spearheads of our army have already entered the Alliance. You can see the fires behind us. It is the living proof that, in the end, you were only able to buy some time. However, many lives can still be saved. I will spare the lives of those that had been fighting if they surrender. If you do so, many will be following your example"

"I´m not going to be the commander that kneeled before the Emperor while the Eagle feasted on the corpse of the deer. An eagle should know that a deer has horns and they can be used to give a fatal blow"

"I see. Then there is no point on negotiating on this matter. Are you willing to fight to the last man?"

"We only need two. I challenge you to a combat under the eyes of the Goddess. Our last fight in the bridge was just a little practice. If your ideals are stronger than mine there is nothing to fear, right?" she said as she drank her last elixir.

"Judith, that is..!"

"A combat under the watch of the Goddess means that we are obliged to obey the result!"

"You are still a young guy, observe and learn. Even if you end up as a prisoner now that´s not the end of all things. That´s the only thing I can offer to you, Emperor. If you refuse a battle to the last man will take place, even from the skies an eagle can be shoot down"

"I have no fear of your challenge. After all that has happened during these years the only thing I can do is going forward" she said as she unsheathed a silver sword from the Professor´s belt. "I appreciate your resolution and your conviction; they are not that different to mine"

"You have guts, that´s something I must admit" she smiled as she unsheathed her last weapon. It was a magnificent sword that had been with her for years. It was the living proof of everything she had learnt during her entire life. To her it was her true son.

Swords impacted against each other, their song resonating in the lonely hill. Her movements were agile and fast, but so were hers. Her hair was all messy after a whole journey of battling, but she knew that she didn´t have the best looks neither.

"I thought that you would be afraid of getting some dirt on your pretty face"

"I am pleased to have subverted your expectations then"

Every attack was quickly followed with a counterattack. The silver sword of her enemy had a shorter reach compared to a battle axe, but it was faster, allowing the Emperor to parry her attacks, but she wasn´t using magic this time. She could feel it.

"This is a battle with no hidden aces. I have no reason to use magic on this occasion. Otherwise, the ideals of my cause would be weaker than yours"

"You might have in the end the soul of a soldier" she said, a small smile forming on her face. If they weren´t battling for their lives it could even be leisurable activity.

With a feint, her rapier was able to pierce through the leg armor of her adversary, the blade turning red with the iron kiss. Now it was her chance, her chance to give a quick killing blow while her adversary´s forces were at its lowest. She aimed the tip of her sword to her neck…but her strength was abandoning her. Looking down she could see the handle of a sword, the pointy end behind her.

"When your adversary is at its lowest it is the moment when you are the most vulnerable. You relaxed your guard and that was what decided this outcome"

"You really have…a warrior spirit" she said as she fell to the ground.

"Rest in peace, Judith, the star of the Alliance. You really gave your best. That is something I will never forget"

…..

**12/29 Ethereal Moon**

"The Alliance Troops have been steadily retreating since our last clash at the border. The areas with more resistance are scarce and they will fall under control in a short while" Edelgard said as she observed the map. They were in the central areas of the Alliance. They had been steadily advancing since the initial invasion, but the initial attack had left a soar taste in her mouth. The fall of the bridge of Myrddin meant an important obstacle to her advances that had caused a detour of most of her forces. Even though some temporal bridges could be placed, only the lightest equipped divisions could traverse through them, the possibility of bringing the food carriages through them an impossible task.

"Such advance is something beneficial to put an end to this conflict quickly, but there are also risks that come with it. The food carriages and most of our forces have been forced to make a detour and the time that will take for them to arrive here is yet unknown, but it could take weeks… and that could put us in disadvantage"

"The Alliance has been kind enough to burn their crops before leaving these areas, so it means that our resources are even more scarce. The use of our flying units to bring provisions from the rearguard has proven to be useful, but that means that our numbers of battle-ready troops are even more limited" Hubert pointed out.

"Some of our allies in the Alliance have already started to provide us help in terms of provisions but they are still careful enough to avoid overstepping until the end of this campaign is clear. As some would expect from a land of merchants, they will not be risking unless the certainty of victory is in front of them"

"The provisions they are providing us are enough to keep our advances. However, now is the time to take an important decision. Should we attack the heart of the Alliance or should we wait until more troops arrive? Each option has their advantages and disadvantages but I would like to listen everyone´s opinion about this matter" She said as she looked at the council in front of her.

"How about we continue? With the Professor we were able to defeat many guys without even needing an army, we can do the same thing in the next battles" Casper said as he raised his hand.

"An…interesting opinion" Ferdinand said as he raised his voice. "However, I think that for such attack is wiser to prepare accordingly. Derdriu is an important city, one of the biggest in Fódlan and it is well communicated. Even if we are able to breach through its defenses a counterattack could take place at any time"

"We could prepare a siege to attack the city while we prepare a perimeter with the troops that are behind us"

"But the docks of the capital are immense. They could keep bringing provisions and troops while we try to prepare a siege and the risks of an attack from the Holy Kingdom would increase as time passes"

"We know Claude from our school years, we could offer him generous conditions in exchange for declaring the capital a free city"

"I highly doubt that he would agree to such offering. He will probably use the time of negotiations to prepare a counterattack"

It was clear to hear that most ideas were contradictory, but listening to such proposal was important to prepare a strategy. She then looked at him.

"What do you think about this matter, Byleth?"

"The situation is difficult. If we wait for more troops, we will allow the Alliance to have more time to prepare its defenses. It is clear that they aren´t retreating without a plan. The fact that they have left nothing behind is intended to leave us in a difficult situation so they can attack us with all their strength. If we approach now, they will not have time to prepare a proper line of defense. However, our troops will be ill prepared and we will have a lack of siege weapons to open additional entrances to the heart of the city. In a conventional war we´ll have the odds against us"

"In a conventional war?"

"Yes. A common strategy would be to place siege weapons and isolate the city to make it fall under our control. However, the fact that the city is well communicated and the high possibility that it will have plenty of resources means that it will cost many material resources to pierce through it. And the worst of all, it will take a lot of time under such conditions. As we continue attacking the capital, the pressure on other areas will increase. In the worst case, the Holy Kingdom could try to enter the Alliance through the west to attack our troops from behind. That´s the strategy I would follow if I were them"

"Whatever we do we will be in a difficult situation, what is the purpose of being here then?" Linhardt complained.

"The upcoming battle won´t be battled only by conventional methods. Ironically, Claude has showed us the way to new strategies that can be highly effective. It is highly probable that he will have another strategy prepared for the upcoming battle, but I also have a plan"

"Please, tell us"

"Many troops of the Alliance are retreating. Among them, many will be probably heading to Derdriu to prepare the lines of defense. We could place among the retreating troops some of our own, those that have the accents of the Alliance"

"The enemy within. Interesting" Hubert sinisterly smiled. "However, only with a handful of soldiers inside the city, the possibilities of achieving victory in a short amount of time is still too slim"

"The objective of such troops would be to sabotage the different entrances to the city and mainly the port. If we can block the port it would mean that the city can´t receive help from the outside and the sabotage of the entrances would mean that the loss of time would be minimized. Naturally, we will still need to face the resistance from within, but that´s the best of outcomes I can think of"

"But Professor, that would be against the classical rules of war that generations have respected in this land" Ferdinand objected.

"Ferdie, they blew up a bridge with us there. I haven´t heard of such books, but if we have an opportunity to take an advantage of the situation, we should take it. That way we would minimize the loss of lives, right?"

"Probably so, lives will be lost, but we could minimize many of them"

"I see, I will think about this matter. For now, feel free to have some rest. Byleth I wish to discuss you another matter. Hubert, stay here as well"

"As you wish, Lady Edelgard" Hubert bowed while the rest of the Strike Force left the place.

"The pieces of artillery we found were made in Almyra. There is no doubt about it"

"Do Almyrans sell artillery pieces to other countries?"

"No, as far as I know the inhabitants of Almyra hide their secrets pretty well. After all, this knowledge is one of the assets they could use in future invasions. The fact that the Leicester Alliance have such pieces of artillery means that they have deals with Almyra.

That would explain why our spies have reported lack of military forces in the far east of the Alliance territory. They aren´t expecting an attack coming from that side"

"If they are lending them weapons it could probably mean that we could face forces from Almyra"

"For now, we haven´t faced such forces, but it is a risk that we cannot deny. Explaining such fact openly could be demoralizing to the troops since the Almyran troops are well known because of their lust for battle…and that could alert the spies of the Alliance that might be on our side"

"I understand. The Almyrans are specialized in mounted archers as well as wyvern riders, but they lack magic users. We could counterattack their main forces with the use of powerful spells in the case that they join forces with the Alliance. Any reports to the north?"

"Our forces might be probably facing the Kingdom ones by now, but there are no signs of any movement from the Church forces. But in a few days, the news from our invasion of the Alliance will probably arrive to the ears of the Archbishop. We cannot exclude an attack to take advantage from our division of troops"

"This was certainly a risky bet, but if everything goes accordingly, we will be able to focus exclusively on the troops of the Holy Kingdom and the Church, with increased resources from the Alliance. This land is wealthy enough to provide us with many resources in the war effort" Hubert pointed out.

"I see, but I would like to ask one thing" he said, making sure that they were completely alone. "When are we going to face those who are awaiting in the shadows, the Agarthans"

"We have been keeping a close eye to their movements. They are currently focused on the border between the Adrestian Empire and the Holy Kingdom, mainly committing sabotages without openly revealing their position. They think that they can act without any consequences, but their time is about to come. And you are perfect for the task ahead"

"What Hubert means is that we are planning to have an operation against them. Currently in the Alliance there have been reported signs of their activity to the east. Openly attacking them could jeopardize our current operation, but the plan is to get rid of them with capable fighters" Edelgard smiled as he looked at him.

"I understand. A small group of well-trained units could be able to get rid of them before they cause any harm"

"Exactly and for such operation…"

"I´ll be taking part" said a serious voice behind him. It was Jeritza. He had been observing them in complete silence, its dark armor fusing with the darkest part of the tent, his cold eyes showing no emotions. "I´ll accompany you, the task is to kill all of them and I´ll achieve such objective, they will be crushed and drown in their blood, such is their fate"

"How they die is irrelevant, but do make sure that there are no witnesses…and Jeritza do not dare to use the scythe. That would be an open declaration of war against them and the time to strike is yet to come"

"I don´t obey you, don´t dare to order my something or you might be losing your tongue the next time"

"Jeritza, remember your vows, you can´t attack any of us, you are bonded by your own blood"

"Tsk, when this petty war ends you´ll have to reward me accordingly" he said as he looked at him.

"If what you want is to die by my sword, so be it. But now it´s not the time, not the place" he said as he looked back at Edelgard. "Is he the only one that will be accompanying me?"

"Yes. Since we lack most parts of our troops I´m planning to send members of the Black Eagle´s Strike Force to the lands of Lord Edmund. He is a noble that can provide us with some reinforcements and crucial information about this region. You´ll be going to the same direction on a different path. We can´t never be sure about who is watching us. Meanwhile I´ll send scouts to the north to prepare for our next battle"

"Understood, I´ll complete the task and return as soon as possible" he nodded.

"Jeritza, you won´t be able to use your own helm until you have completed this task. Its features are too unique for a stealth mission like this. You´ll use one of the generic helmets at the armory"

"In that case one that completely covers my face. Without a mask…I feel weaker"

"Of course" Edelgard nodded. "I know that I´m asking for too much, but that´s the best we can do with the resources we have. You will depart before dawn. I hope for the best of outcomes"

"Don´t worry, with both of us this will be a bearable task. I´m counting on you, Jeritza" he said nodding at him while Jeritza just looked at him. He was planning to use this opportunity to know him better. The Death Knight was a great warrior, but he wasn´t sure about how much of it was within Jeritza. He already knew that Mercedes was Jeritza´s sister, but he didn´t have an opportunity yet to talk with her about the matter. "Whatever you do, I´ll eventually come to see your true face under the mask you have worn for so long" he thought as he observed the lands of the east on the map.


End file.
